


Becoming Heroes

by IrishBella



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, superhero au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-28
Updated: 2018-08-28
Packaged: 2019-07-03 15:10:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 39,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15821433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IrishBella/pseuds/IrishBella
Summary: Emma's the villain, unstoppable in her quest for World Domination, until 10-year-old Henry Mills comes along. With his innocent smile and belief in good conquering all, he quickly worms his way into Dark Swan's heart.After some fight scenes, tiny Henry beating a notorious super villain (or 2), finding out he’s adopted and his mom was the Infamous Evil Queen, he grows to realize not all heroes save the world and not all villains are entirely evil.





	Becoming Heroes

**Author's Note:**

> Huge shoutout to my beta and all around cheerleader, Jenna, who helped me through story blocks and planning all the character superpowers.  
> Without you, this story would be a total mess. So, thank you for reading through this mess and making it wonderful <3
> 
> To Mippippippi for making the most wonderful artwork a writer could dream of. Click [here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15795015) to look at the beautiful art she created for this story. 
> 
> There is some cursing and some depictions of violence, most of which are mild, but I'll provide a warning just in case.  
> Thanks so much for taking time to read this story and an eternal thank you to the people who work so hard to make SQSN happen each and every year. You are truly the best!
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Henry Mills was just a normal kid. Until he wasn’t.

He’s not sure when he realized he had powers, but he remembers first noticing while he was doing homework. He found a pen at school one day and when he started using it, the words he wrote became objects. So, when he wrote the word **_CUP_** , it actually became a cup. He doesn’t know how he has kept this secret from his mom for so long, but she’s got enough to worry about. _And she certainly doesn’t care about me enough to realize what’s going on,_ he thinks bitterly. So, when he writes a word and it becomes itself, he’s been able to hide it. Thank god it didn’t happen while he was writing his paper on pterodactyls, he doesn’t think he could’ve kept one of those in his closet.

One night, about a week ago, he was walking home from his friends house - _way_ past his curfew - and saw someone breaking into an apartment. So, his first instinct was to call for help, but his phone died 20 minutes ago. He heard a window crack and worried about anyone in the apartment. “Hey!” he shouted to get the criminal’s attention. _Oh no, now what do I do?_ He thought as the criminal turned. He saw the criminal step toward him, toward the steps of the fire escape. Henry grabbed the first thing his sees, a can of spray paint - probably left behind by some local delinquents - and used his pen to write the word **_HORN_**. _Please work,_ he thought with his eyes squeezed tightly shut. Suddenly, the paint can was a horn. He sighed and thanked whatever is up there watching him. He grabbed the horn and pressed the button to sound a warning. It’s loud, so loud that it hurts Henry’s ears, but he doesn’t let up. Eventually, one light turns on, and then another, and another and another. People came to the windows to shout at whoever is causing all the ruckus.

“Hey kid! Quit with the horn, okay?” Someone shouted from a window.

Henry watched a light turn on in the apartment where the criminal was trying to break into. There was a scream when they realize their window is broken and then there was someone on their fire escape. Henry sighed in relief before creeping into the shadows and back to his own apartment.

He snuck in without his mother noticing. He left the newly-acquired horn in the trash can outside his building before creeping into his apartment and then his bedroom. He laid in bed and thought about the criminal. It felt good to help whoever that stranger was. He was finally doing something good. Maybe he could do it again, but without the fear. Maybe if he was ready for it, for the unknown, for saving someone, maybe it would be easier. Maybe he would get better at it. Maybe he could even save someone’s life.

He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

This becomes his new norm. He starts out small, sneaking out when his mom works late, patrolling the neighborhood and stopping criminals in their tracks. That’s when he runs into Defiant Nightowl; a small-time villain. They’ll claim to be up-and-coming, but they’re not. They’re destined to accomplish small crime violations - similar to a common delinquent. Of course, when Henry ran into them, he wasn’t expecting a wannabe supervillain. But he defeated them nonetheless.

Henry is out for his nightly patrol, the furthest he has ventured since he started these crime-fighting escapades, when he sees someone standing outside the open door of a convenience store. It’s far too late for store owners to have the doors open to the public. Only the emergency lights are on in the store - someone must have disabled the alarm system. Henry can see the lights off on the cameras and thinks about what he can do. He smirks and grabs his pen from his pocket. He writes **_SPOTLIGHT_ ** and sneaks closer to the store windows. There’s only one person inside. He takes his pen again and writes **_WINDING ROPE_ ** before initiating his plan. He moves the rope so it’s laying across the doorway, ready to trip the intruder if they try to run.

He ends up calling the police. Well, he calls his mom’s friend Graham. He’s a part of the police force - so it counts. The first time he called, he begged him not to tell his mom. And so far, Graham hasn’t said anything.

Henry sees lights in the distance and hears a crash within the store, “Shit!” someone shouts as they try to untangle themselves from the rope on the ground. The more they struggle, the tighter it gets, winding around them until they can no longer move.

“FREEZE!” Henry shouts in his deepest voice - trying to sound like he’s a police officer and not a kid out past curfew. He flicks on the spotlight and runs down the road, away from the criminal and away from being caught in his all-black outfit.

He runs right into someone. “Easy Henry,” Graham whispers.

His heart is racing and he’s trying to catch his breath, “Geez, Graham. Why are you sneaking around like that?” He wheezes.

“Me? I’m in my reflective uniform…?” he acknowledges with a raised eyebrow. He looks to Henry in his all black outfit.

“I can’t be seen,” Henry says as he slips into the shadows.

“Henry,” Graham says, hoping he doesn’t leave. “What are you doing?”

“Saving people,” Henry says honestly.

Graham sighs, “Henry, you know how dangerous this line of work is. And if someone knows you’re a Super? Well, you know what could happen.”

Henry freezes up, his eyebrows drawn together, “Then stop using my name.”

Graham closes his eyes, hoping for patience. “Hen-” he sighs, “Listen, you know that’s not the problem. You’re way too young to be galavanting around so late at night. Think about your mom, she’d be worried sick if she knew.”

Henry shrugs, “She’s fine. She wouldn’t understand anyway. I actually _want_ to help people.” An exhausted sigh escapes Graham. Henry interrupts, “Yeah, yeah, I know, I know,” he rolls his eyes, “And whatever. I’ll go home now. I guess I’ll just stop calling you if you keep getting so cranky.”

“Henry,” Graham says, dripping with disappointment, “You know that’s not what this is. I’m glad you’re being safe and calling for backup. But what if someone finds you before I do? I don’t want you getting caught or worse, being outed. It’s not safe out here for young kids. Especially a young kid with superpowers.”

“Goodnight Graham,” Henry says with finality.

Graham sighs and rubs his forehead, “Goodnight Henry. Do you need a ride?” But Henry’s already gone.

When Henry makes it home, he sneaks into his room and sighs as he changed into his pajamas. He needs to figure out a new way to stop criminals _without_ involving Graham.

There’s a trial and error period where he tries different techniques to stop criminals but after a few months, he thinks he’s got it figured out. He hardly ever calls Graham since he started spending more time with Henry and his mom. Henry does _not_ like it. The way he looks at his mom? It’s creepy. And he’s always over late at night. It’s making it harder for Henry to sneak out because he’s always there. He was even standing in their kitchen when Henry snuck in the other night.

But he’s stopping criminals. He’s stopped more than a few supervillains too. Not any big ones - since the other superheroes take care of them. But Henry’s doing his part to keep his city safe. The villains even came up with a name for him. They started calling him The Author since he creates all of his crime-fighting tools by using a special pen.

And then he ran into his first big name super villain, Dark Swan. He’d never encountered such a well-known supervillain. He found her while he was doing roof patrol, making sure no miscreants were attempting any funny business. He had crouched over when he recognized who she was. They were on opposing rooftops and Henry had never felt fear like this before. Here she was, standing atop a four story building, blonde hair blowing in the wind as she looks down on six men stealing from a jewelry store. You’d think someone stopping thieves would be a hero, but Dark Swan was anything but. She’d kill you without a second thought. Simply because you’d inconvenienced her day. Henry’s seen videos people took while she’s attacking someone. There’s even rumors that she was trained by the government before she went rogue.

She jumps down four stories, adding a roll to help with the impact, and landing on her feet. Henry’s eyes bulge. Not only did she land on her feet - she did it in heels!! And not just any heels, the sharp and pointy ones, like his mom wears when she wants to be scary at work. She stands up as if nothing happened and smirks at the men who halt in front of her. “Those jewels are mine,” she says with a growl. “Now, which one of you is Jeremy?” No one says anything. “Well, I suppose you’ll all have to be Jeremy then,” she muses as she pulls out a gun and fires two shots. Two of the men fall to the ground. Henry’s eyes blow wide as she smiles a dangerous smile and moves forward toward the remaining four men. “Well? Do we know who Jeremy is yet?”

“He’s- he’s,” one man starts, “He’s right there, you just killed him,” he says as he points at one of the bodies.

Dark Swan tsks at the brunette man and says, “Lying is a major character flaw.” She lifts her gun and shoots two more men. Henry is terrified and doesn’t know what to do. He knows the police can’t help him, Dark Swan is too powerful, and he doesn’t want them to get hurt because he’s scared of a villain.

 _She’s just a person,_ he tells himself as he thinks of a way to save the other two men.

“Now. Eenie Meenie Miney Moe,” she says as she points the gun between the two men.

Henry tries to think of a way to distract her. Maybe if he can get her attention, the two remaining men could get away.

“He- he’s Jeremy,” the man that spoke earlier said.

Dark Swan sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. She relaxes, popping one hip out to her side, as if she’s leaning against something in the middle of the alley. “You know what, Jeremy? Your lying has got to stop. It’s killed four of your  men and now you’ve only got one person in your corner. Do you really want to be the cause of everyone else’s death?”

The other man, blonde, looks at his dead friends and says, “I didn’t want to do it, I swear. Jeremy told me I had to or he’d go after my kid. I can’t let that happen.”

Dark Swan looks to the man that just spoke. “Listen, I understand wanting to protect your family. Well, actually I don’t, I never had one. I had the government. They were the only family I knew, and let me tell you. They were shitty. The absolute worst. Kind of like Jeremy here. He only wants you if you’re useful. Once you’re done being useful, you’re dead. So, I’m going to save Jeremy the trouble here. Your kid is better off without you.” And with that, a bullet flies through his head and his body crumbles to the ground.

“Dude! What the fuck?!” Jeremy screams.

“Don’t ‘dude’ me Jeremy. _You_ did this. You blackmailed your friends and now they’re dead. If you would just do what you’re fucking told, it wouldn’t have to end like this.”

“You lie,” Jeremy spits.

“Yup,” Dark Swan says. She goes to lift her gun again but Jeremy jumps at her, throwing it from her hands. “Goddammit, Jeremy. You can’t make this easy, can you?” She throws him to the ground and lifts her heeled boot, ready to stomp on him. “Why do you always do things the hard way?” She continues to grumble as Henry thinks of a plan.

Henry grabs his pen and writes **_PAINT_**. He opens the container and throws it over the edge. He hears a thunk and carefully peaks his head over the side of the building. He sees the paint container lying on the ground and he sees Dark Swan covered in paint. It seems to have landed right on her head. Her curls were flat, saturated with the thick paint he threw. Her all-black ensemble of skin-tight leather is also covered in fire engine red paint, making for a funny sight. Maybe if she wasn’t trying to kill this man, and wasn’t currently looking directly at Henry, he might have laughed.

Instead, his heart started thumping even louder than before - if that was even possible. He ducks his head back down, hoping she would disappear. Instead, he hears a whooshing sound, a soft thud as heels hit the ground; Henry carefully opens his eyes. He slowly raises his head to see Dark Swan looming over him. _Oh no_ , he thinks as her eyes glimmer with something vicious.

“Do you know how hard it is to get paint out of leather? Or out of hair?” she asks, voice razor sharp, like nails on a chalkboard.

“Ummm...no?” he offers meekly.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

She peeks over the edge of the roof she’s on and sighs, Jeremy is gone. “Well, now you’ve allowed my thief to get away. I suppose you’ll have to do, _Painter,_ ” she spits as she swings her leg and hits him square in the chest. He falls backwards and lands flat, with an oomph. He stands up, shaky, and looks around himself, probably trying to find some kind of weapon. _As if it would help him_. She struts over and grabs him by the neck and lifts him up. She has him over the edge of the building in the blink of an eye. _He’s kind of small,_ she thinks. He claws at her hand, praying she doesn’t drop him. This is weird, he’s too frantic with his movements. She gives him an odd look but brings him back over the edge and sets him down on the ground. “You’re a kid?!” she asks, horrified.

“I prefer the term young adult,” Henry says with as much dignity as he can muster since he was screaming for his mom two seconds ago.

“What are you, twelve?” she asks as she pulls him closer by his neck to study his eyes in the darkness.

“Not yet,” he says shakily.

She releases his neck and steps back, eyes wide. _A kid? A fucking kid? I’m fighting a kid?_ Geez, she’s a villain, not a monster. She shakes herself and says, “Listen, this isn’t a place for some wannabe that’s out past curfew. Go home, kid.”

“Why? So you can get away with your villainy ways?” Henry says, puffing his chest out as he rubs at his neck.

Dark Swan rolls her eyes, “Leave, before you get yourself into trouble.” With that, she stands on the roof and disappears over the edge.

She makes her way home. _Jesus Christ,_  she thinks as she replays that altercation in her head. She almost killed a kid. What the hell was she thinking? She moves from one shadow to the next, as if she was a part of the darkness herself.

“Dammit Swan,” she says as she scales the wall outside her apartment and slides in through the window, into her bedroom. She sighs as she begins to take off her outfit. She rolls her shoulders and stretches her arms as she shakes out her hair. It doesn’t move. “I hate paint,” she mutters as she begins to take off her weapons. First, it’s the gun on her right hip, then at her left knee. Now her knives, strategically placed in her boots and strapped around her upper left thigh. She unloads her guns and places them in her lock box, she already has another on her headboard and a knife under her pillow as well as under her couch, all unable to be traced back to her villain personality. She would never use her trademark weapons to stop an intruder. No way, her secret identity is too important to have a slip up like that. And one thing the government taught her was how to never get caught.

She moves to unclip her holsters on each side and lays them on top of the closed lock box. She slips off her boots and takes off her belt. She peels off her suit and sighs as she realizes there’s no way to salvage it. After running a hand down her face, she tosses it into the garbage. “‘No one can get to Dark Swan’” she mocks to herself as she walks into her bathroom and turns on the shower, “Apparently all it took was some shrimpy kid and a can of paint.” She shakes her head and steps under the falling water. She slowly releases the tension in her shoulders and begins to wash the paint out of her hair.

“I almost killed a kid today,” she whispers on her third round of shampooing her hair. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen. She never wanted this. She was forced into this. Did she run away from her training and kill people? Yes, but she would’ve always been killing people. Now she’s just able to _choose_ who she kills. But not kids. No way. That’s a solid no. Never kids. They’re off limits. But this kid was causing trouble. Maybe he was trying to save those hooligans, but they were skimming from the pot and had to pay.

Her eyebrows draw together in anger. Jeremy. He got away from her. All because some kid decided to play hero. Well, not anymore. She climbs out of the shower, finally paint free, and dries herself off. After combing her hair, she braids it and crawls into bed. Tomorrow was a day to plan for revenge.

She’s found him. Jeremy thought he had gotten away from her. He even tried to hop on a plane, but she hacked into TSA and put him on the no-fly list. He was removed from the building where she was able to snatch him up. “No one to save you now,” she whispers before they disappear into the shadows.

Thankfully, she doesn’t see that kid again. But she finds herself thinking about him a lot. She hopes he made it home safely. She hopes he’s realized a wannabe hero is not a job for a kid. She hopes she doesn’t see him again. At least that’s what she tells herself.

She runs into him again. She does her best to avoid him noticing her, and she thinks she’s succeeding. She hides in the shadows and climbs buildings to avoid him. It’s been a few weeks, and she’s sure he trying to find her again. She’s noticed him attempt to thwart a few other supervillains plans. Once she even had to cause a distraction so he could get away. She rubs above her eyebrows as she plans an escape, seeing the boy scamper away along the rooftops. When did she grow so soft?

 _Enough of this_. She knows all she needs is an evil plan to get her back on track. Her plan to steal the Tausadite Crystals which control the moon, and thus the entire planet, was in motion. She already had two of the crystals, only six more to get.

Of course, a damn superhero decided to get in her way.

“Just tell me what I want to know, Cricket,” she fumes as the ropes around him grow tighter. She watches a gear, slowly moving, clicking tighter and tighter.

“Never. You’ll never be able to get all of the crystals needed for the moonstone,” the Cricket says as he struggles against the ropes.

She notices a shadow creeping toward the ratchet. If he shuts it off, Captain Cricket could get away or worse, stop her from getting the next crystal.

The shadow moves closer. He almost has the ratchet in his hand when he’s hit with a blinding light. “Oh no, not you again,” Dark Swan says as she uses her flashlight to shine on the boy’s face. She lifts him up by his shirt and moves him away from the ratchet and places him in a chair next to Captain Cricket.

“Hey Captain Cricket,” he says shyly as Dark Swan starts wrapping rope around him.

Captain Cricket looks aghast, “Who are you? And why are you here?”

“Well, I was _trying_ to help you, but it seems I failed,” he says as he hangs his head.

“You’re a child!” Captain Cricket says as he eyes grow wide.

“That’s what I said!” Dark Swan exclaimed, equally outraged. “Kid, you gotta get some sleep. Don’t you have school or something tomorrow?” she asks as she looks at the brunette boy.

He huffs, “I can handle it. I have to do what I can to stop crime.”

Dark Swan shakes her head, “Well, you don’t have any paint cans tonight,” she says with a smirk.

“Not yet,” he muses as he tries to grab his pen without her noticing. “You got a new suit?” he asks.

Now it’s her turn to scoff, “Yeah, I told you it was hard to get out.” She notices the ropes getting tighter around the boy. “Hey kid! You gotta stop moving or those ropes will keep getting tighter,” she explains. When he doesn’t listen, she sighs and moves to turn off the gear. “You’ll still be tied up, but it won’t tighten anymore.” She sighs and runs a hand down her face as she moves back in front of him. _Soft._ “Listen, kid, what are you doing here?” she asks with a sigh as she squats in front of his chair.

“Saving Captain Cricket,” he answers nonchalantly.

She groans, “You don’t make this easy, kid.” She looks over to see the superhero giving her a strange look, trying to figure out why she hasn’t hurt either of them yet. She growls at that damn Cricket and quickly reaches out, thrusting two fingers into the spot where Captain Cricket’s collar bones meet. He is immediately knocked unconscious.

“You killed him!” Henry shouts.

Dark Swan groans, she hates kids. _Why do I have morals?_ she asks herself as she thinks about how she won’t kill this kid. “He’s not dead, just unconscious,” she explains. She stands up from her crouch position and continues, “It’s a throat stab. It can be dangerous, but I’ve been able to do it correctly since I was 11, I’ve had lots of practice.”

“You’ve been a villain since you were 11?” the boy asks in fearful awe.

Dark Swan shakes her head in commiseration, “It wasn’t supposed to be like this,” she says quietly. She never wanted to be a villain. All she wanted growing up was to be wanted, to be loved. She wanted a superhero to come and save her when she was being “trained” but no one ever came. _No one comes to save you, you have to save yourself._ But she doesn’t say any of this, she turns to look at the boy “Aren’t you in school? It’s a school night. You need to focus on your schooling and, gee, I don’t know, maybe staying safe?” she adds with a shrug.

“I can do both,” the boy says softly, looking down at his feet.

He spends the next half hour listening to Dark Swan as she talks about the importance of school. He listens as Dark Swan drones on about getting enough sleep and staying away from stressful situations, _like when people are trying to kill you_ Dark Swan had emphasized. The young boy doesn’t respond, but he thinks about how many times she could have killed him already, but hasn’t - so he thinks she’s all talk at this point. “AHA!’ he says aloud causing  Dark Swan to give him an odd look but ignores it to continue her rant. She moves away from the boy and hears a _click_ and the lock holding the rope snuggly around his body falls away. He looks up at her with wide eyes. She can’t believe he got out of those ropes. “How- What- Huh?” she finally lands on.

He quickly throws something small that explodes in front of her. There’s ringing in her ears and she’s laying on the ground. There’s another pop, more smoke, and then everything fades into darkness.

She wakes up and realizes she’s in Windstone. Again. She groans, her head falling backwards against the wall she’s leaning against. “Windstone Penitentiary. Where even the worst villains can become heroes,” she mocks the logo of this prison. They pretend it’s a place for rehabilitation. It’s a prison, not a rehab. She sighs as she thinks of how many times she’s been in this place, perhaps even in this very cell. She rubs at her temple, she’ll no longer be able to pretend to be rehabilitated, the staff won’t believe that more than eight times. They’re not as dumb as they look. So, she’s had to improvise. She may need to actually _think_ of an escape route this time.

It takes her a full week for her chance to escape. Which is seven days more than she intended, but the staff seems to have gone digital and computers make less mistakes than humans. But they’re prone to mistakes when their coding contains those mistakes. It just took her a few days to get near a computer. After that, it was mere minutes until she was able to hack their system and another four hours before the guard change. She slipped out undetected, just like always.

Now to get those other crystals.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

Henry doesn’t know what to do. He heard on the news that Dark Swan was in prison. When he used those smoke bombs, he didn’t want to hurt her, but he had to save Captain Cricket. He got the superhero outside by writing **_ROPE_ ** and dragging him out of the building. The Cricket came to just before Henry made it out of the building. Henry sets him on the floor as the superhero tries to get the rope off of him.

“How’d you get this?” Captain Cricket asks as he looks at the rope in his hands.

Henry lifts up his pen and shrugs, not saying anything.

“You’re the Author?” he asks in disbelief.

Henry offers another shrug, looking at the ground.

“I- I didn’t realize you were so young.” There’s a pause. “Alright,” he says, down to business. “I’m not sure what happened in there, but you can’t mess around with Dark Swan. She’s the worst of the worst. She’ll kill ya dead without a second thought. You just worry about school and stuff. You can be a hero when you grow up a bit more.” He claps a hand on his shoulder, “Ya did good tonight, Author. But focus on your studies for a while, the villains will still be here when you’re older.” With that, he was gone, back into the building to grab Dark Swan.

Henry heads home and sneaks into the building. He takes off his mask and dark sweatshirt in the elevator. He runs a hand down his face as the elevator stops on his floor. He sighs and moves toward his door, unlocking it. Sneaking inside takes longer than usual; he’s so exhausted. _So much for being quiet_ he thinks as he falls back against the door. He locks it and pushes himself off the door before moving towards his room. _School tomorrow is gonna suck_. He wanted to fall face-first into his bed, or that was the plan. Instead, he walks past the kitchen and the lights flip on. He freezes. _Busted_. He turns around with a sheepish smile on his face and sees his mom tapping her fingers against the table. She’s staring at him with a look full of concern, confusion, and a whole lot of sadness. His heart breaks, he hates when she looks at him like that.

He moves into the kitchen and falls into the chair across from his mother. “Go for it,” he mumbles as his head drops to the table, defeated.

“Go for what?” his mom asks in confusion.

“Yell at me, ground me, throw me out, whatever.” He doesn’t raise his head from its place on the table.

“Henry,” his mom says, the dismay in her voice scratching against Henry’s ears. “Do you really think I would throw you out?”

He shrugs, “I don’t know anymore. You probably still hate me.”

“Henry,” she says, as if her heart was breaking. Henry’s heart clenches at the thought, “I could never hate you. You’re my son, nothing you do will ever change that.”

He lifts his head in doubt, “I told you I hated you and that I wanted to find my _real_ family. I know you hate me.”

She shakes her head, tears in her eyes, “I’m sorry you think that, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I love you more than anything, Henry, and I always will.”

Henry looks at her, judging to see how serious she was. It’s too late for them to have this conversation. He’s too tired, too emotional. His eyes well up with tears, “Really?” His mom nods, “More than anything?” Now they both have eyes filled with tears, “No matter what?” She nods again, tears pooling over onto her cheeks. He practically leaps over the table and into her arms. He’s crying as he wraps himself around her, sobbing into her shoulder as she holds him in her lap.

“Oh Henry,” she says, “I can’t believe you would ever think something like that. I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you,” she repeats, holding him close.

They sit like that, together in the kitchen until Henry’s sobs turn into hiccups. He sighs and shifts his head so he’s resting gently on her shoulder. He’s getting too big to crawl onto her lap, but he’s not ready for this to stop. Not right now anyway. “I’m sorry, Mom,” he whispers. There’s so much to apologize for. Telling her he hates her. Telling her she’s not his _real_ mom. Telling her he’s going to run away. Calling her evil. Calling her a villain. Ignoring her every chance he gets. Acting sullen any time he’s in her presence. But right now, he’s sorry for everything, including sneaking out at night.

“I know, Henry,” she says back just as softly. He’s afraid if they speak too loudly, they’ll shatter their tiny bubble.

Eventually, when Henry’s thought process kicks in he leans back and asks, “Weren’t you supposed to work late at the hospital tonight?”

His mom looks at him and nods, “I was, but John offered to cover my shift so I could get home before you went to bed.” She pauses and raises an eyebrow, “Imagine my surprise when I realized you weren’t here.”

“Sorry,” he says, lowering his eyes away from the piercing ones of his mother.

“Henry, where were you?” she asks with trepidation.

He shrugs, “Out. Sometimes I can’t sleep so I go out. Not far, I promise,” he lies and feels his throat closing but he powers through. “I was just-”

“Henry I know you weren’t on the roof. That was the first place I looked. And when I called Graham he told me everything.”

“He what?!” Henry asks as he jumps off his mom’s lap and shouts, “He had NO RIGHT to tell you that.”

“Tell me what, Henry?” she asks. He can tell she’s confused and concerned at his outrage by the look in her eyes.

Henry’s eyebrows draw together is a look of doubt and confusion, “What do you mean when you say he told you everything…?” he asks slowly.

He watches his mom lift her eyebrows in uncertainty, “He told me you’ve been roaming the streets and have even gotten into some trouble. Why are you doing this, Henry?”

“I want to,” he states matter-of-factly.

His mom sighs, “Henry, you know this city is dangerous. That’s why you have a curfew. It’s not safe out there.”

“That’s why I need to help!” he reasons.

She shakes her head, “Henry, sweetie, you are such a kind soul, you’ve wanted to help people your entire life, but maybe we can think of a safer way for you to help them. Maybe volunteer as a shelter serving food after school, or you could even come to the hospital and help in the gift shop or at the coffee house.”

“That’s not the same,” he explains.

She sighs once more, pushing the stray hairs away from her face. Henry knows she’s exhausted by the way her face falls, “Henry, I don’t know where this idea about roaming the streets at night came from, but it’s far too dangerous. Please, promise me this will stop. It’s not safe.”

Henry shakes his head, but he is far too exhausted to properly pout against his mom’s stern voice.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“Come here,” she whispers when she sees how tired he is. Her heart stops beating when she thinks he won’t accept her hug but she exhales in relief when he walks back over and drapes his body over hers. She chuckles when he immediately becomes a dead weight in her arms. She should feel worse for using her powers to make him more tired, but she knows he needs sleep and that he’ll need the extra help right after crying. She rubs his back, allowing her power to make him feel more exhausted and relaxed. He sways his body against hers, ready to fall asleep. “It’s very late, and you have school in the morning.” He groans and she laughs, “You should make it to bed by curfew and you wouldn’t be so tired.” Another groan. “Come along, let’s get you to bed.” She stands and leads him to his room. He pushes off his shirt and pants, struggling with his shoes and socks, before falling face first into his bed. She shakes her head with a smile and helps him under the covers. “Goodnight my little hero, we’ll talk more in the morning.” She places a hand on his arm, making him feel more relaxed.

He closes his eyes, “Love you, Mom,” he murmurs into his pillow and her eyes fill with tears. Maybe they are moving forward.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

Dark Swan paces the floor of her Swan Sanctuary as she thinks about how to get back the crystals that the damned bug stole from her, and how to find the others to complete the Tausadite and control the moon. “I hate bugs,” she murmurs to herself. She needs to find herself an exterminator.

She plans on hunting the bug down again, but instead finds herself in a fight with the Brothers Seven. “Oh great, time to fight some tiny, angry humans.” She didn’t realize, but she really missed the other tiny human that had been thwarting her every plan. At least he had class. These bozos didn’t know their right from left. She sighs and quickly disarms and detains all of them. It took her five minutes. “Are you sure your names are Stupid, Slow, and Lame?” she asks as they try to break free from their bonds.

“You’ll pay for this, Swan!” one brother growls at her.

She chuckles and coos, “I think I’ll call you Grumpy.” And in a seamless jump, she’s out of the alley and away from the ‘heroes’.

A few days later she finds herself in a fight with a woman who calls herself Snow White - a friend of the Brothers Seven and current enemy of her friend, Crimson Vixen. Something about her phrase, “lips as red as blood” never sat right with Swan and she struggled to decipher if this woman was truly a hero or if she was actually a villain at heart. She knows stories about Snow from Crimson, but has never met the woman before. According to Crimson's stories, Snow was more villain than hero, and that is enough for Emma.

By the end of their fight, Swan has an arrow in her bicep and this Snow White person is walking with a limp thanks to Swan’s push dagger and the heel of her stiletto. So, while Swan gets away with only one wound, she definitely can’t handle this on her own. She groans as she tries to make it back to her apartment and assess the damage.

It’s much worse than she anticipated.

She changes out of her leather suit and struggles into jeans and a white tank top. She cuts the arrow shaft so it’s not sticking out of her arm and puts a giant piece of gauze over it. She carefully slides her leather jacket onto her good arm and drapes it over her shoulder. She hops in her bug and heads to the Emergency Room.

Registration is tedious but thankfully she’s moved to a room right away. A nurse comes in and looks at the wound, asks a few questions, and leaves, telling her a doctor would be in shortly.

“They seem very calm for an arrow wound,” Swan mumbles to herself as she resituates herself on the table.

Suddenly, the door opens and 4 doctors walk in. They’re all talking a mile a minute but no one addresses her. That is until a brunette walks in and steps next to her bed. “Hello, Miss…” she pauses to look at her clipboard, “Swan.” She looks back at the blonde sitting on the examination table. “Interesting name,” she muses.

“Had it all my life,” Swan says with a shrug.

The brunette does her best to hide her smirk, “I’m Doctor Mills. Sorry about the observers, but it’s not everyday you see an arrow wound.”

“Glad I could be your first,” the blonde says with a devious grin to the young doctors standing around her table.

The doctor huffs but chooses to ignore the comment and instead unwraps the gauze over Swan’s bicep. “How long has this been in?” she asks without looking up.

Swan shrugs, “Ummm I don’t know. A couple of hours maybe? I mean, I went to my apartment to try and take care of it myself, but it’s too deep. I knew I couldn’t pull it out alone. So, I came here and was waiting until you showed up.”

“Do you have a time period?” the doctor asks while examining the wound.

“Uh, it was already dark out?” Swan offers with a small smile.

The doctor pinches her nose before looking up at her patient, “Listen, Miss Swan-”

“Emma.”

“I’m sorry?” she asks confused.

“My name is Emma. You’re going to pull a metal object from my bicep; I don’t want you to call me ‘Swan.’ No one really calls me by my last name.” She tries not to laugh at her own personal inside joke but a smirk shines through.

Her doctor, a beautiful, leggy brunette, sighs and shakes her head, “Fine,” she offers simply. “Emma, I need to know everything I can to best help you.”

Emma lifts a shoulder, “That’s all I’ve got. Sorry, can you still take it out?”

“Of course we can, we’re the Emergency Department. This will be a simple procedure.” She pulls out her stethoscope and listens to her heart and lungs. “How is your pain?”

Emma shrugs and winces, “It’s not too bad,” she lies.

Dr. Mills rolls her eyes; she turns to the team of white lab coats behind her. “Let’s start up an IV of Fentanyl and-”

“No,” Emma says adamantly.

“Excuse me?” Dr. Mills says as she looks back to her patient.

Emma looks down and her shoes, swinging beneath her, trying not to sound weak. “No IVs. I don’t like...um...things being hooked up to me.”

“Well, Miss Swan-”

“Emma,” she interrupts.

The doctor sighs, and seems like she’s counting to herself to keep control of her temper. “Em- _ma_ , you’re here to have this arrowhead removed and that’s what we’re going to do. Having an aversion to needles is not going to prevent me from treating you.”

“Not needles. Just IVs.” She sees her doctor ready to fight her on this, “No. IVs.” Emma repeats, a challenge, like fire, in her eyes.

Dr. Mills raises an eyebrow. “Fine,” she says, conceding to her patient that has suddenly developed an anxious twitch in her right hand. Her patient is trying to hide something, she’s just not sure what. She turns her attention to the other doctors in the room, “Get me a shot of Toradol and a regional anaesthetic of lidocaine. I’ll be removing this foreign body from the left bicep,” she’s all business as she examines the arrowhead once again.

Emma sighs, she’s glad she didn’t have to explain _why_ she doesn’t like IVs. After having all kinds of IVs filled with unknown chemicals and “tester substances” shoved into her body while she was in “training” for the government, she can’t handle IVs. They make her nervous. They make her nauseous. Even thinking about something continuously pumping into her bloodstream makes her want to vomit. She bites her cheek and tries to control her bodily response. _You can do this,_ she tells herself as she clenches her right fist.

She watches Dr. Mills move about the room as nurses and doctors come in and out, giving shots, and preparing her for the removal.

The whole procedure was fairly quick. Thankfully, she has an incredibly high pain tolerance; whether that’s genetic or learned from all the pain she was subjected to as a child, she’ll never know. She never met her birth parents and she doesn’t really remember her time before The Government. Part of their "training" was teaching their children to forget their lives before they came to The Government. It didn't matter what was before. The Government was the only thing they needed to know. It was all they had. It was all they needed.

Emma tries to focus on the doctor in front of her, the room she's in, and the feeling of the arrow in her arm. She tries to push the thoughts of The Government away and focus on here and now.

The doctor doesn’t say anything, but when she gives Emma the shot for pain, she uses an undetectable amount of her power to relax her and help with her pain.

After the procedure, Dr. Mills tells her to keep the area clean and dry and gives her a prescription for antibiotics to make sure the area doesn’t become infected from the metal.

“Thanks Doc,” Emma says with a smile.

It’s just them in the room but Dr. Mills rolls her eyes anyway. “Follow directions and let your body heal. If I have to see you again because you were too hard-headed to listen to my instructions, I may just shoot you with an arrow myself.”

Emma laughs a carefree laugh, “Don’t tease me, Doc. I don’t like people who make promises they can’t keep.”

The doctor shakes her head but Emma notices a small blush on her cheeks. “Goodnight, Emma. Go home and get some rest.”

“Aye aye Captain,” she says with a mock salute. She stands and grabs her jacket, “Thanks for fixing me up, Doc. I appreciate it.”

“Of course, it’s my job,” she says obviously.

“Well, you’re very good at it,” Emma says with a soft smile. With that, she leaves the room. She smirks as she heads past the front desk, hoping to find her woeful opponent and finish her off. If everything goes right, she’d have two more crystals by the time the sun rises.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“Heard you had a weird one today,” her friend mentions as she pours them both a glass of wine.

Regina shrugged, “No more than any other day in ER,” she muses as she reads through her son’s report card.

“You had some girl with an _arrow_ in her arm. That’s normal?”

“Oh, settle down, Kathryn,” she sighs. “It was a surprise, but nothing difficult. A simple removal.”

“What was mom?” Henry asks as he walks in the room and grabs a glass and fills it with water.

“A patient I had at work, dear. How was school today?” she asks, changing the subject.

“Fine,” he answers. “I think I’m going to head to bed,” he says as he moves from the kitchen, “Night Mom, night Kat,” he calls as he moves into his room and closes the door.

“Things are still tense I see,” Kathryn muses as she swirls her wine.

Regina sighs and presses her fingers to her temples, a sure sign of an impending headache. “It’s not as bad as it was, but it’s a slow process. At least he called me Mom.”

Kathryn goes to put her hand on her friend’s shoulder when her phone rings; it’s a ring that she has come to dread. She quickly grabs her phone and answers, “What happened?” A voice speaks on the other end and she watches her brunette friend’s shoulders tense. “Got it, I’ll send my best.” And she hangs up.

“I hate that ringtone,” Regina groans as she rubs against her temples.

“They need a healer, Gi,” she says, using her childhood nickname, hoping it would work.

“I can’t go, Kathryn,” Regina sighs, “I have Henry...and…”

“And a conscience,” Kathryn adds with a hopeful smile.

“Damn that thing,” Regina mutters as she stands.

Kathryn smiles and hugs her friend, who doesn’t push her away - which is a good sign, “And a babysitter.”

Regina groans but returns her friend’s hug - sort of. She stands back and pushes her hair from her face, “You don’t have anyone else?” she asks, hoping for a miracle.

“You’re the best, I promised my best.” She pauses and offers a sad smile, “Sounds pretty bad, apparently a group of villains decided to blow up a bank, while a meeting with the top executives was occurring. They stole a lot of private information about some high-ranking officials while simultaneously hurting a lot of people... _innocent_ people, Regina; they need discretion and the best healer.”

“So they call you,” Regina muses as she moves into her bedroom and into her closet. “Cascade,” she adds, using Kathryn’s super identity.

Kathryn stands outside the door and laughs, “That’s _Madame_ Cascade thank you very much. I worked hard to earn that title.”

“You learned how to use a computer,” Regina jokes as she steps out in her outfit.

Kathryn scoffs, “You make it sound like what I do is easy, as if _anyone else_ could do it.”

Regina replies with a scoff of her own and sends up a flare of fire from her palm into the air. Kathryn drops her hand on her friend’s, extinguishing the fire. “Not anyone, Kathryn. You find information where no one else can.”

“Aw, now you’re just sweet talkin’ me,” she jokes. “But it helps that I was a part of a hero group and have some great numbers to contact if needed. You just happen to be my best friend and also my best healer.”

“Who knew supers needed a coordinator to save the day,” Regina says as she adjusts her boots. God she _hated_ this outfit, it’s tight and intimidating. Not what one needs as a healer, but exactly what one needs to be a villain.

“You could use an updated supersuit,” Kathryn suggests, reading Regina’s mind.

“Get out of my head,” Regina mutters as she finishes strapping her emergency tools on her person.

“You were practically screaming,” Kathryn points out with a shrug.

Regina rolls her eyes, “I don’t want to do this.”

“I know, but you’re not The Evil Queen anymore, and you can help people. And you want to help because you’re a good person.”

“Don’t go spreading lies about me, dear,” Regina says as she ties her hair back into a ponytail.

Kathryn laughs, “Quit stalling, there’s a bunch of needy rich people to save.”

Regina groans but heads out, “Keep an eye on my son, please. And don’t drink all my wine.”

“The first is a given, the second is up in the air,” Kathryn calls as Regina heads out of the apartment.

She makes good time hopping across the rooftops and makes sure her mask is secure with her hood over her hair before climbing in the window, “Someone called for a healer?” she asks.

It’s then that she sees she’s not the only super at the party. Well, _see_ maybe isn’t the right word. She feels them, feels their energy practically smothering her as she moves toward the first victim. Thankfully, his wounds are superficial and she weaves the skin back together, resetting the bone and closing it up all at once. She tries to ignore the super energy, it’s dark and heavy and makes her feel like she’s drowning. She continues to heal bodies as she moves around the room, the energy never fading.

“What’s your name?” A voice rasps as she tends to a shrapnel wound.

Regina scoffs, continuing to pull shrapnel out of the gaping stomach wound with her mind.

“I don’t mean your _real_ name,” the voice grates as she moves a particular piece that causes pain.

“I am a simple healer,” she murmurs, focusing on removing the other pieces of metal in this person.

“Yes, but what do we call you?” he asks through clenched teeth.

“The Savoir,” another voice calls from the shadows.

Regina feels the energy intensify. This voice is definitely the super. And definitely _not_ a hero. Instead of showing any interest in the energy, she snorts and continues to extract shrapnel.

“What? You don’t like it?” the voice asks.

Regina pauses her work to look toward the direction of the voice. “Never been called that.”

“It suits you,” the voice says.

Regina does her best to not to roll her eyes but doesn’t respond, focusing all her energy on pulling the metal from this man’s stomach. She finishes removing all of the shrapnel and sighs as she knits the skin back together, erasing all evidence of anything ever being there. She wipes a hand across her forehead, erasing the only evidence of her already long night. She stands and moves on to the next person, a woman with a gash spread from her temple to her jaw.

“Wait, I think I know you,” the shadow voice claims as she walks toward the other woman.

“I highly doubt that,” Regina says through a clenched jaw. She hunches her shoulders in an attempt to mask her notorious strut. She doesn’t have time for this. She was already tired after a trying day, and now she’s here using the rest of her energy saving the lives of these rich men and women because they didn’t want to go to the hospital like normal people.

“The Evil Queen,” the voice says as she finally places the outfit.

Regina freezes, but only for a second. Unfortunately, it’s enough for the voice to notice.

“Ha. Ha. Ha. Oh, this is rich,” the voice starts with a slow clap. “I’ve heard stories about you. I thought you were dead.”

Regina focuses her attention back on the woman in front of her, sewing up the laceration on her forehead. She’s almost done, just one person left. She stands and moves toward him but someone steps in front of her.

“I am talking to you,” the person says.

“No, you’re confused and talking to a ghost,” Regina says with a raised eyebrow. “I’m here to heal, that’s my job. But you’re not here to be healed,” she confirms with a critical eye, “so why are you here?”

“You can’t be serious,” she says as she motions to her outfit. When Regina says nothing she scoffs, “You really don’t know who I am?”

“Should I?” Regina asks. Of course she recognizes this person, but she won’t say anything. She goes around the villain and to the man sitting against the wall. She squats in front of him and immediately heals his chest wound, releasing a breath when he shifts and groans in pain, _at least he’s alive_ she thinks as she goes about healing the broken foot and moves her hands to heal the wounds on his head and face. A split lip and black eye are easy compared to the gouge on the side of his neck. She’s focusing all of her attention on reattaching the exposed muscle and ligaments. She barely has a second to brace herself when she feels the air move as the villain tries to attack her. She catches the hand before it hits her neck and flips the villain on their back. She places a vice-like grip on the villain’s throat and leans over her, “I am in the middle of something right now. You’ll have to wait.” And she taps her shoulder, effectively keeping her frozen in place as she turns her attention back to the half-mended man against the wall. She finishes healing him and releases a sigh. Regina stands and brushes a few stray hairs away from her face as she says, “You’ll feel achy for a few days, but there will be no lasting effects. Get some rest and drink some water,” she adds.

“Just like the doctor ordered,” someone says with a laugh.

Regina nods with a tense smile and says, “I’ll be taking my leave now.”

“Thank you,” another voice says, “Savior,” he adds with a smile.

Regina scoffs but turns her attention back to the frozen villain on the floor. “You guys should go.”

They follow her look to the woman on the floor and quickly exit the room.

“Alright,” Regina says with a sigh. She rolls her shoulders and lifts the freezing spell off of the villain.

“Hey!” she says as she jumps up, “that was _entirely_ uncalled for.”

“Easy, swans are supposed to be graceful. They don’t jump around like that, it’s out of character,” Regina says as she inspects her cuticles.

The villain gasps, “I _knew_ you knew who I was!”

“Barely,” Regina scoffs.

“As if,” she rejects.

Regina pinches her nose, “I don’t have time for this. I came here to heal those people and now I need to leave. Some of us don’t spend our days plotting how to ruin someone else’s day. Some of us have _real_ jobs; jobs that help others.”

Now it’s Dark Swan’s turn to scoff, “Oh please, don’t pretend like you _actually_ care about other people. You’re The Evil Queen. Or at least you used to be, now it looks like you’ve gone _soft_.”

“You’ve got the wrong person,” Regina says. And she has _not_ gone soft.

“Well, if you’re not some _renowned_ supervillain, or some kind of reformed villain - neither of which I’m entirely sure of,” she adds with contempt. “Then you’re some kind of superhero sent here by Madame Cascade-”

“How do you know about Cascade?” Regina asks, suddenly angry and concerned about her friend’s safety.

Dark Swan laughs a deep laugh that floats through the air and she places her hand on her hip, “Oh, that’s rich. Who do you think called her?”

“Why on _Earth_ would you call for help for some of your victims?” Regina sneers.

“Oh, gee, I don’t know, maybe because no one was supposed to be here when we broke in. Maybe because _someone_ used too much explosive. _Maybe_ because we were only here for some dirt on some arrogant, pompous, scum-of-the-earth rich people to ruin their lives when we get bored at our weekly Hostile Bitches and Villains meetings and instead found some of the employees working overtime while their cruel bosses sat drinking expensive wine, watching them. So, we messed up by hurting the employees, but their bosses deserved worse. The employees needed to be stitched up, their bosses were moved to a nearby hospital back doors.”

Regina looks unsure. It _could_ be true, but she trusts this person as far as she could throw her, on a good day. She guesses since she hasn’t thrown anyone in a while.

“Maybe because being a villain isn’t straight-up hatred for _everyone_. I still believe you’re The Evil Queen, but you’ve gotten rusty,” she jibes.

Regina’s jaw tensed, she is _not_ rusty. “The Evil Queen is dead,” she grounds out through clenched teeth.

The villain scoffs but moves on, “I may want to rule the world, but not _everyone_ needs to die. That would ruin the entire idea of world domination! But _heroes_ ,” she spits the word, “are particularly terrible. I called a healer to help some innocents, but if you’re a hero, well, I suppose I’ll have to end you.” She puts herself into a stronger stance while still maintaining a fearsome profile. Regina has to give her credit, it’s not an easy thing to do. It took her a few tries to be able to fight _and_ stay looking tall and foreboding. “Heroes are only in it for the fame, for the glory. They don’t care about the _real_ people, the people that truly need rescuing. They’re too busy saving those in public spaces, where there are witnesses, and a camera crew. They don’t want to help _everyone_ , just the ones they deem worthy of saving. They’re only a super, a hero, because they want the glory.”

“Oh, Sweetie,” Regina mocks with a pout, “who hurt you?”

“Oh, Sweet Cheeks,” Emma mocks back, “you couldn’t possibly _begin_ to understand what I’ve been through.”

Regina knows they’re bickering, but the serious undertones pull her up short. She knows what it’s like to become something you never wanted to be. She knows what it’s like to grow up without support and with more pain, anguish, and suffering than anything else. But she focuses her attention back on Dark Swan, to see her slowly start to circle her.

“Call me that again and it will be the last thing you say,” Regina warns, moving opposite Dark Swan, keeping her distance.

“Don’t tease,” she mutters with a wag of her finger. “I don’t like it when people make promises they can’t keep.”

Regina freezes, why does that sound so familiar? She shakes the deja-vu feeling and releases a smirk, a smirk she hasn’t used in a very long time, a smirk equal parts alluring and menacing. “Trust me on this, Swan, I _always_ keep my promises.”

They move in a circle around each other. Eventually, Regina stops, causing the blonde to stop as well, “What? Getting tired without your villainy stamina?” she mocks.

Regina growls, “It’s like talking with a child,” she spits. “I have had a long day. How about we call this a wash. You messed up, I swept in and saved some innocents, fixing _your_ mistake. I just want to get a little sleep tonight.”

The blonde ponders for a moment, “Hmmm,” she says as she taps her chin. “How about no,” and lunges toward the brunette.

Regina groans and brings a table in front of her, separating her and the blonde.

“Really? Healing _and_ telekinesis? What the hell kind of mutant are you?”

“Watch yourself,” Regina warns. She pushes the table away from her, pinning the blonde villain against the wall.

Dark Swan snarls as she tries to push her way out from behind the table. She breaks free and charges at the brunette. She doesn’t make it. Regina flings a glass of flowers toward her, missing, but catching the villain off-guard. She whips out a knife and throws it toward Regina.

Regina lifts a hand to stop the flying weapon. It stops inches from her face, “What the hell?” Regina screams, “You _maniac_!” She uses her power to throw the knife right into the floor. She brings a fireball to life in her palm.

“I KNEW IT!” the blonde shouts as she points to Regina, “You _are_ The Evil Queen!”

Regina groans but throws the ball of fire at the blonde, “ _You_ brought this up. I don’t want to be that person, I never wanted to be that person!” She pauses and takes a deep breath, the flames from her palm extinguish, “I’m not that person,” she adds quietly. She rubs at her forehead, “Look, I don’t want to be here. I’m going to leave, and you’re not going to follow.”

“Oh really?” the villain sneers. “And who’s going to stop me?”

“You are,” Regina answers simply. She focuses her attention on Dark Swan’s thoughts and manipulates them. Suddenly, Dark Swan falls to the floor. Regina catches her with her powers and lays her gently - she’s not a villain anymore and as a doctor, she doesn’t want to give Dark Swan a preventable concussion. She changes the villain’s memory from after she called Kathryn until now. She didn’t need anyone knowing The Evil Queen is alive. She sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. She feels horrible. She used to wipe people’s memory for any little thing that she didn’t like. She stopped this because of how shameful she felt afterwards. It makes her feel dirty and used, but she’s the user right now. “I’m sorry,” she whispers, resting a hand on the top of Dark Swan’s head in apology. And with that, she disappears, leaving nothing but a puff of smoke.

She rematerializes just outside her apartment. She sighs and runs a hand down her exhausted face. After a deep breath, she moves inside to find Kathryn staring at her computer with a glass of wine in her hand. “You look like Hell,” she says as she sees her friend walk in the door.

“Gee, thanks, you’re a real friend,” Regina grumbles as she flops gracelessly on the couch and rests her head against her friend’s shoulder.

“Ha ha,” Kathryn mocks, “How’d it go?”

“Dark Swan was the one to call you.”

“What?” Kathryn asks, sitting up, knocking her friend’s head back against the couch.

Regina groans but continues, “Yeah, apparently she and her hoodlum villain friends were only at the bank for dirt on the rich CEOs, the employees weren’t supposed to be there.”

“And she helped them? By calling me?”

“Yes, apparently you’re the go-to hero liason,” Regina teases.

Kathryn scoffs, “Now that makes me feel used.”

Regina laughs, “Oh, please. You’re obviously a genius, that’s why people call for you.”

“That’s why I chose Cascade as my super-name. I am _the_ wealth of information.”

“Oh I know,” Regina sighs with a smirk. “Never any secrets from you, remember?”

Kathryn returns the smirk, much more mischievous. “I love it,” she adds with a chuckle.

Regina rolls her eyes, “She also figured out who I am.”

Kathryn freezes, “She what?”

“You know what I mean,” Regina says without opening her eyes.

“You’re joking. She can’t know about that. That person doesn’t exist anymore. How did she figure it out?”

Regina shakes her head before opening her eyes and lifting her head from the back of the couch, “I have no idea, but she did. I had to manipulate her memory and everything.”

“Oh Gi,” Kathryn whispers, “I’m so sorry.”

Regina shrugs, looking at the floor, “It is what it is.”

“I know you hate that,” Kathryn says, “But it had to be done. You’re safety, _Henry’s safety_ depends on you keeping your cover. If The Evil Queen resurfaces as a rumored healer? Well, that would ruin everything. People would start poking around where they shouldn’t. I know your identities are solid, I made them myself, but if the wrong people start digging, I don’t want to take any chances. People thinking The Evil Queen is dead is the safest thing for you and Henry.”

“I know that, Kathryn,” Regina snaps. She rubs at her temples and sighs, exhausted, “I know,” she whispers defeatedly.

Kathryn reaches out and rests a hand on her friend’s arm, “I know it doesn’t make it any easier,” she offers softly. She stands up, “Why don’t you head to bed,” she says as she takes her friend’s hands and lifts her from the couch.

“Let me just check in on Henry,” Regina says as she moves toward his door. She hears her friend’s sharp intake of air but brushes it off since she’s too exhausted to think about it. She opens his door and sees him sleeping in his bed, his messy hair sprawled across his pillow. She watches his chest rise and fall for a moment, allowing his safety to wash over her.

“He’s safe, Regina,” Kathryn whispers.

Regina nods and closes his door, “I know,” she says, completely exhausted. She stands there, waiting for her friend to leave.

Kathryn catches on and smiles at her drained friend, “Oh Gi, I’m going to stay here tonight. I’m not leaving.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Regina says, trying to find the energy to prove to her friend she’ll be fine.

“I know,” Kathryn says, “But you’ve got the best coffee, and I’ll be up fielding calls all night, especially if Dark Swan was there and now has no memory.”

“She’ll have fuzzy memories of what happened, but she won’t remember seeing me, just a vague healer,” Regina clarifies.

Kathryn nods her acknowledgement. She opens her mouth to say something but is interrupted by the ringing of her phone, she groans.

Regina laughs, “Good thing you’re also fluent with public relations.”

“Well, we can’t _all_ go to med school, Regina. Some of us have to work in Public Relations with the other common folk.”

Regina shakes her head but can’t keep the smile off her face. “Help yourself to whatever you need, and please use the guest bed to at least get a _little_ sleep before we go to work tomorrow.” Kathryn nods but turns her attention to her phone, “Goodnight,” Regina says quietly as she slips into her bedroom.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

Swan wakes up and shifts herself into a sitting position, _what the hell happened?_

She looks around and sees a room disheveled. What did she do? She racks her brain, looking for a clue, a memory, as to what happened earlier.

 _Deep breaths Swan_ she tells herself as she starts combing through her memory. Alright, their plan to break into the vault went south. Somehow they missed the fact that employees would still be in the building. She had to call Madame Cascade for a healer, those damn employees didn’t deserve to die because their bosses were angry idiots without souls. The healer came, _didn’t they?_ Emma asks herself as she rubs her forehead directly over her pounding headache. _Yes, the healer came_. But then what? Emma doesn’t remember. She remembers people being healed, but it’s all so fuzzy.

She stands, trying to ignore the shooting pain in her head. _God why do I feel so terrible?_ Her mind is still fuzzy but she knows two things, the innocents have been saved and she wants her damned crystals back.

Swan finds her crystals, but not Snow White. She heads back to her Swan Sanctuary so she can figure out where the remaining crystals are hidden. “Only three more to go,” she tells herself as she tries to track the crystals through her computer. She types furiously and almost misses the silent step behind her. Without looking, she already knows it’s the kid. She isn’t even surprised he found her sanctuary, he is ridiculously talented at being where he shouldn’t. It was ignorant for her to think he would leave her alone and go back to being in school. “Dammit kid, I didn’t want to do this,” she says loud enough for him to hear. He’s close to her now, close enough for her to reach behind her and grabs his wrist. With a pinch of her fingers, the boy is knocked unconscious and she quickly catches his body and places him gently on the ground. She pinches at the bridge of her nose and calls her closest “friend”. They started off as begrudging allies, both getting out of the Program when Red’s Granny came looking for her and when Emma ran away. They met up again years later and became friends over the years, using their alliance to take down heroes and any villains trying to walk over their turf.

“Red!” she shouts. They never use their given names - their _real_ names - in the Sanctuary. Another thing the government taught them.

There’s a soft, almost silent _thud_ where her friend lands next to her, “You know my name isn’t Red, right? And you know I don’t like it when you say that.”

Emma shrugs, “Don’t care, it suits you.”

“Whatever,” she responds as she flicks her hair over one shoulder and runs a hand along her skintight skirt. “What’s up, Swan?” she asks as she looks at the boy on the ground, “Are you redecorating?”

“Listen, I need you to get this kid out of here. And I need him safe,” Emma says with a serious look.

“Really? Dark Swan’s weakness is a boy?” she asks, dumbfounded.

Emma scoffs, “As if, I just think if I’m going to defeat someone, they should be of age instead of learning division in math class.”

“Sure thing, Swany,” she says as she bends over and lifts the boy over her shoulder. “Where should I leave him?”

“Well, he won’t be out for long. So, maybe just stay with him until he wakes up? Then leave him someplace where he can get home.”

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

So, Crimson Vixen, the renowned supervillain and sworn enemy of Snow White, is babysitting on a rooftop, sitting high above her city, waiting for a tiny wannabe hero to wake up from a sleeper pressure point. “Never thought I’d be here doing this,” she murmurs to herself.

The hero comes to and sits up, immediately on alert. “Crimson Vixen?” he asks, still confused.

“You bet,” she says with a mischievous grin. She watches as he realizes a villain is with him. The information washes over him and Crimson smiles as she watches his confusion change to fear. “Guess you’re a pretty important guy to have your own bodyguard.” She laughs as he fear turns to denial and anger.

“I don’t need a bodyguard,” he bristles as he tries to stand up. Crimson sees his balance is off and watches him tilt, ready to fall back to the ground.

“Easy there, Ambitious Wannabe,” Vixen says as she catches him and keeps him upright.

“I don’t need any help,” he claims, immediately defensive.

“Sure thing, kiddo. Let’s get you to lower ground so you don’t pitch yourself over the roof.” She steps in front of him and wraps an arm around his waist. “Hold on,” she says. He doesn’t grab on. Crimson waits and realizes he doesn’t want to take help from a villain. She rolls her eyes but jumps off the roof and grabs onto the fire escape. It takes him a second to grab on and it almost causes him to fall from her and to the ground eight stories below. He grabs around her neck and clings to her as she seamlessly shuffles down the side of the building. “Alright, Wannabe,” she says as they land on the ground. “Do you know where you are?”

He looks around and nods, “Yeah, I know where I am.”

“Good, you think you can stay safe and make it home?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.

He nods and looks down at the ground, “Yeah,” he says, sullen.

The villain nods and gives a thumbs up. “Later Wannabe,” she calls before she disappears up the side of a building.

Henry sighs but heads home.

“Swany, kid’s awake and alive,” Red says as she walks into the Sanctuary.

“Great,” Emma says, without looking up from her computer. “Oh! Red?”

She peaks her head out of the kitchen, “Yeah?”

“Think you can keep an eye on the kid? He thinks he’s stronger than he is and I don’t want him getting hurt doing something stupid.”

“Who is this kid, Swan?” Red asks.

Emma shrugs, “I don’t know, just some kid-super that thinks he can save the world,” she mocks.

“Then why?”

“Why what?” Emma asks, confused.

“Why the interest in this kid?” Red asks, leaning against the doorway.

Another shrug, Emma tries to play it off, “I don’t know, he seems to have the right intentions, which won’t last long,” she snides. “But I just don’t want him getting hurt. He’s a good kid in a bad world.”

Red gives her a look, trying to figure out what she _really_ meant by that. She chooses to ignore it, “Fine, Swan. I’ll babysit your kid. But I’m going to keep asking you why until you give me the _real_ answer.”

“That is the real answer, Red,” Emma says, turning her attention back to her computer. “And he’s not my kid,” she adds. Red snorts but moves back into the kitchen to find some food. “How about you quit raiding my fridge and go bug your _girlfriend_ ,” she teases.

“She’s not my _girlfriend_ ,” Red responds with a scoff.

“She’s _Crypto Beauty_ ,” Emma mocks dreamily.

Red jeers and throws an apple from the fridge.

Emma laughs, catching the apple in her hand, “Go help Crypto with the information we stole. We better at least get _something_ from all our hard work yesterday.”

“Sure thing, Swany,” Red says as she grabs two drinks and tosses another to Emma.

“Get the girl, Red,” Emma calls at her retreating friend.

Red laughs and disappears up the staircase.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

It’s early. Emma’s not even sure why she’s awake. Yet, Red jumped in her bed at an ungodly hour singing about finding ‘the best dirt _ever_ ’ and claimed Emma wouldn’t get any of it if she didn’t buy coffee for the three women. So, here she is, standing in line waiting for coffee in gray sweats, her signature white tank, flip flops and a black cardigan in place of her red leather jacket. It was easier to put over her bandaged arm. Her hair was in a low messy bun with a ball cap pulled low over her eyes. The barista calls her name and she maneuvers between the other customers to collect the three coffees and muffins. “Thank you,” she mumbles as she turns around and runs smack into someone, almost spilling coffee everywhere. “Oh my goodness, I’m _so_ sorry,” she says as her eyes move from the ground, seeing bright running shoes, up toned legs covered with black leggings, up over a baggy gray sweatshirt, a braid attempting to contain a mass of dark curls, and finally landing on deep brown eyes equal parts concerned and annoyed. When eyebrows raise Emma smiles, “Sorry, again; I wasn’t looking where I was going. Guess I should probably wake up completely before I go for coffee.” She offers a chuckle and attempts to side-step the brunette who looks oddly familiar.

 _It’s something about those eyes_.

Both women end up moving in the same direction. They share an awkward chuckle and apologize to each other before Emma says, “Doc Mills?”

The brunette freezes before trying to study the eyes in front of her, “Yes?”

Emma reaches with her free hand to lift her hat up from her eyes, “Emma Swan,” she offers with a smile.

After a moment Regina smiles, “Emma, yes, from the hospital. Hello, how are you?”

“Alive because of you, Doc,” she says with a laugh.

Regina rolls her eyes but can’t keep the smile from her face, “Regina is fine, and you’re hardly alive because of me, but I’m glad you’re feeling better.” She looks around the busy coffee shop and asks, “Do you always come to this coffee shop? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before?”

Emma shakes her head, “I’m picking up coffee for my friends’. I’m not from this neighborhood but this place has the best coffee in the city, so it was worth the trek for breakfast.”

Regina chuckles, “This place does have delicious coffee.”

“And pastries,” Emma adds. When Regina gives her a confused look she adds, “You’ve had the pastries here right?”

“I can’t say I have,” Regina answers honestly. “I only ever stop long enough to get coffee before work or after a workout.”

Emma sees that she has a running outfit on, “Well, if you just got done with a run then you definitely deserve one of their bear claws.” She sees the doctor wrinkle her nose, “Hey, don’t knock it ‘til you try it.”

“I’d rather not,” Regina says with a curled lip.

“You don’t know what you’re missing,” Emma informs her, “It’s like heaven on earth.” She pauses and offers a wicked grin, “It’s better than sex.”

A blush rises on Regina’s cheeks before she responds, “If that pastry is better than sex, then you’re not doing it right Em- _ma_.”

The way she says Emma’s name does something weird to her insides, but she tries to ignore it insead saying, “Oh no, this pastry is just _that good_.”

Regina rolls her eyes and says, “I’ll keep that in mind.” She moves forward with the line and smiles when she sees the blonde move with her.

“Do it,” Emma says seriously, “Give in to the peer pressure and live a little, Regina. Trust me, it’ll change your life.”

“Next!” a voice calls from behind them.

Regina turns to see it’s almost her turn to order. “Well, I best get this coffee to my friends before they lock me out of the apartment for bringing cold coffee,” Emma says with a shrug as she motions to the coffees in her hands.

“Yes, you don’t want to have to eat your bear claw outside or anywhere you’d be seen enjoying something so perfect,” Regina says sarcastically.

“Har har, just get yourself a bear claw and you’ll understand.” She sees Regina roll her eyes but smile anyway. “Catch ya later, Regina,” she says with a smile.

“Goodbye, Emma,” Regina says, with an equally large smile. She turns back around and waits for her turn to order. She got that bear claw.

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

She is _not_ a babysitter. Red cringes as she watches the kid try another super jump. He failed. Again. It’s been like this all week. He spends his time practicing super jumps and other parkour moves he must’ve watched on YouTube. He also helps a few people into their apartment buildings or back home from convenience stores with lots of bags. And every once in a while, he’ll run into some thugs or a small-time villain.. She realizes that he’s actually pretty good. And then she realizes why.

 _Holy shit did he just find some rope?_ She wonders to herself how the hell she didn’t see that rope before. Then she sees his pen, _really_ sees it. _It’s not a normal pen_ she tells herself when she watches him write something on the sidewalk and then _it_ **_becomes_ ** _that word_. She can’t believe her eyes. _Who the hell is this kid?_

“What the fuck, Swany?” Red shouts as she enters the Sanctuary.

Emma turns in her chair as Red jumps from the balcony at the entrance to right next to her. “Huh?” she asks, watches Red stalk toward her, her body shaking with rage.

“You ask me to babysit some wannabe and don’t tell me he’s one of the strongest supers around right now?” she snarls, a deep growl radiating from somewhere deep inside of her, a place Emma wants to remain hidden.

“What are you talking about?” Emma asks as she tilts her head in confusion.

“That kid. He’s the Author,” Red says with narrow eyes. “He’s reckless and throws himself into danger and he’s a KID, Swan.” She pauses, eyebrows drawn down, “You didn’t know.” It’s not a question.

Emma answers anyway, “No.” She pauses and looks at the ground, thinking of the times he thwarted her. “No wonder he was able to get out of the ropes, he made himself a key.” She groans, “That little sneak.” She turns her attention back to her friend, “Is he getting himself into trouble?”

Red’s eyes soften. For some reason her friend really cares about this kid and if she’s being honest with herself, she is starting to care about him too. “Yes,” she answers honestly and can’t help the smile that takes over her face, “But he’s so noble about everything. It’s insane, and also endearing; but mostly infuriating. He jumps headfirst into danger and it’s always with the right intentions.” Emma laughs and Red joins her, “He ran into Master Smasher.”

Emma groans, “I hate that guy.”

“I know,” Red says, “He tried to throw the kid off his game by smashing up the sidewalk and it worked. Wannabe fell and Smash-man started moving closer to him.” She uses their made-up nickname for him because he’s a joke of a villain, “I walked into the alley in wolf form and he scoffed about the hero’s bodyguard but I bit him in the ass and he ran away screaming.”

Emma laughs thinking of that image.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

Henry limps back into his apartment building, thinking about his promise to buy Crimson Vixen a cheeseburger since she was so exhausted after she morphed into a wolf. His knees are in a lot more pain than they were before. He’s achy all over and just wants to sleep. Once he’s in the elevator, he leans back against the wall and waits for the doors to close. As they shut, he sees someone walk in the front doors, “Henry?”

Oh shit.

He’d never let his mom hear him say those words, but that’s the only thing in his brain right now. His mom was home earlier than usual. Or he was running late again. Either way he’d just left her in the lobby and he doesn’t know what to do. He rips off his hat and matching sweatshirt. She’s gonna kill him.

The doors open and he rushes into their apartment, as fast as his sore knees will take him. He quickly runs into his bedroom and jumps under the covers. Maybe his mom will think she imagined the whole thing, she _has_ been working all day. He tries to control his breathing and waits, hoping his mom will go straight to bed.

She doesn’t.

“Henry?” she calls softly after she enters the apartment. She moves to stand in his doorway and whisper, “Henry, I thought we talked about sneaking out at night?” He says nothing, hoping she just goes away, he can’t see her sad or disappointed again. He hears her sigh again and feels his bed dip as she sits down. “Henry, I know you’re awake.”

He slowly sits up and looks at his mom, “How’d you know?”

“Henry,” she deadpans, “I’m your mother, I know everything.” She smirks and shakes her head, “And you left the door unlocked...aaaand your shoes are still on your feet.”

He looks down, “I knew it wouldn’t be that easy.”

“Henry, why were you out so late? Again,” she adds with a raised eyebrow.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he offers.

She’s not amused, “Henry.”

“Mom, it’s not a big deal.”

“Henry! This is a very big deal! You shouldn’t be out by yourself so late.”

He thinks about telling her that he wasn’t alone but that’s an explanation he wants to avoid. So, he remains silent. It’s easier this way.

Regina sighs and rubs her temple, “Henry,” she starts, placing a hand on his knee. He flinches. Her eyebrows draw together in confusion, “Henry? What’s wrong?”

“Oh, um...well, nothing? Really. Just fell on my walk to the store tonight,” he lies.

She lifts up the blanket and looks and the bruises on his shins and knees. “Henry!” she gasps.

“It’s nothing, Mom, just some bumps. They don’t even hurt!” Her eyebrows raise, “Okay, they don’t hurt too much.”

She sighs and runs a hand up and down his leg, releasing a small amount of her power to help ease his pain since she’s watched him wince more times in the last two minutes than he has in the last two weeks. “Get some sleep, Sweetie. We can talk in the morning before school. Goodnight.”

“Night Mom, love you,” he adds as he sinks back into his bed, feeling relief in his knees and suddenly very tired.

Regina’s heart seizes up and a giant smile spreads across her face, “Love you too, dear.”

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

“Go help Crypto finish that information,” Emma tells her friend, “We need to start using that in the next few days or we’ll never finish the plan on time.”

“We have a plan?” Red mocks, “Well, this is the first I’m hearing about it.” Her friend _never_ has a plan. She’s more of a on-the-fly villain.

“Haha, very fun,” Emma replies with an eye roll. “Now get outta here.”

“Oh, you wound me,” Red says as she stands and moves into the kitchen to grab some food. She wasn’t lying to the kid when she said morphing took a lot out of her.

She heads toward the stairs and hears, “Focus on the facts and not Crypto’s boobs.”

“Bitch,” Red mutters on the steps.

“Heard that!” Emma calls after her. Red scoffs but doesn’t say anything else.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

Emma finds herself spending more time at the coffee shop, hoping to run into the gorgeous brunette she can’t stop thinking about. One morning, after a week of nothing, she decides to sit in the shop and do some basic background checks on her new minions. She has to make sure they are who they say they are. Her back is to the wall, she can see the entire shop from her spot but somehow she misses the one entrance she was waiting for.

“Has this become your new spot?” Regina asks as she sits across from Emma.

“Regina, hey!” Emma says as she sits up from her laptop and presses it shut. “Funny running into you here,” she adds with a smile.

“Is it?” Regina questions, raising her eyebrow.

“Well, sure, who knew we’d run into each other here.”

Regina’s eyebrow climbs higher on her forehead and a smirk takes over her face, “Really?”

Emma gasps, “I have no idea what you’re insinuating.”

Regina chuckles, “My friend is a barista here part-time. She says you’ve been in here every day this week, staying for hours and then you’re back again the next day. Apparently, you’ve been here more this week than you’ve ever been before.”

Emma shrugs, “What can I say, great bear claws.” Regina purses her lips, unimpressed. “Okay fine, I’ll admit, I might have oversold the bear claws. They’re definitely the best in the city, don’t get me wrong, but my friend Tiana? She makes the best bear claws ever. Like, seriously, they melt in your mouth and are absolutely delectable. I mean, honestly, you’ve had the bear claws here, take their deliciousness and multiply it by a million. If you don’t believe me that these ones are better than sex, fine, but T’s _definitely_ are.”

The brunette chortles, her whole torso expanding to release the laughter. “You are very adamant about those bear claws.”

“Well, I do love a good bear claw.”

“Is that the... _only_...reason you’ve been here every day this week?” Regina asks with a small smirk.

“Nah,” Emma says, leaning back into her chair, “their coffee is pretty good and the wifi is free.”

Regina blinks incredibly slow, and here she thought she’d get a real answer, how silly.

“And,” Emma adds, “I _might_ have been hoping to find a certain doctor I’ve seen in here before.”

“Oh, really? Is that what this is about?” Regina asks with a satisfied smile.

Emma lifts a shoulder, nonchalant, “Maybe, but the free wifi is absolutely a bonus.”

“Of course,” Regina says with an unconvinced nod. They share a comfortable silence, both women sipping their coffee and avoiding each other’s smiles, trying to find a way to continue their conversation, neither wanting to cut this moment short. “So, you know that I’m a doctor, but I know nothing about you; what do you do for a living?”

Emma raises her eyes to meet Regina’s, “I’m a bail bondsperson.” When Regina merely stares, she adds, “I hunt down criminals and turn them in.”

“You’re a bounty hunter,” Regina states in disbelief.

“In crude terms, yes, I suppose you can look at it that way. I like to think of it as doing the right thing, making the bad guys face their crimes. They need to be held accountable for what they did, I just help the police find them.”

“So, you hunt people down...through computers?” she asks, motioning to the laptop on the table.

“Usually,” Emma says casually, “People tend to be careless with their internet searches and social media posts; it makes it easier to track them through their computer usage than tracking their physical location.” She looks up to see the brunette staring intently, as if she really is listening to every word and not just pretending. That’s something Emma isn’t used to. She looks and notices Regina is still in her scrubs. “Just done with work?” she asks.

Regina shakes her head, “I wish. Unfortunately, I’m just on my break. I had to run home and had just enough time to stop for coffee.”

“And instead, you sat down to chat with me. Are you skipping work right now, Dr. Mills?” Emma asks, pretending to be affronted.

Regina scoffs, “I have a long break. Not breaking any rules.”

“Damn, and here I am, having a thing for rule-breakers.”

Regina smirks but before she can flirt back, her pager goes off. She groans but quickly reaches for it, “I’ve got to take this,” she reveals as she stands.

Emma smiles, “Good luck,” she calls after the retreating doctor.

She’s totally going to get the girl.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

Henry feels his shadow again tonight. He smiles as he thinks of Crimson Vixen following him, tracking him from the rooftops. At first, it irritated him that a villain was following him, but by now, he and Crimson have it worked out. She keeps her distance, and doesn’t thwart his good deeds. Maybe villains aren’t _always_ evil after all. He moves through the alleys, barely making a sound as he does his neighborhood checks. “Hi Ms. Jenkins,” Henry calls to the elderly woman walking to her door from the store.

“Well, hello there sweet boy,” she calls as she looks over her glasses to see him.

“Don’t forget to lock your door tonight,” he reminds her with a smile.

“Oh, you’re too good to me, my dear,” she says with a smile as Henry helps her into her door with all her bags before closing the door. He smiles when he hears the click of the lock moving into place and moves on to the next check.

“Hey Mrs. Reed,” Henry calls as he waves to the woman on the third floor of the building down the block.

“Hello dear!” she calls from the open window.

“Is Mr. Reed out of the hospital yet?”

“He sure is!” Mr. Reed says as he moves into the window and waves.

“Glad you’re back,” Henry says with a smile.

“Thanks for all your help and making sure everything was locked up while I was sick. You’re a good man!”

Henry laughs, “Anytime!”

“I’ve got cookies for you, dear. Give me one second to come down the elevator,” Mrs. Reed says as she disappears from the window.

“No need!” Henry shouts as he jumps to the first balcony and up the corner balconies until he’s at theirs.

“You certainly are getting stronger!” Mrs. Reed praises.

“It’s all those cookies you keep making me,” Henry says with a chuckle.

“You deserve them,” the older woman says, “and more,” she adds with a bop on his nose.

“You’re very kind, Mrs. Reed, but I’m just doing my part to keep the neighborhood safe.”

“Oh, what a sweet child,” she says.

“Have a goodnight,” Henry says. He jumps down to the ground and landed with only a minor twinge in his knee. “Thanks for the cookies,” he calls up and waves as he moves down the street.

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

 _Damn that kid is sweet_ Red thinks as she watches him walk with a bigger bounce in his step.

She continues to watch as he helps other neighbors and chases away a few punks looking to play some pranks.

And then a villain shows up. Red groans, she _hates_ this one.

“Hello,” a voice purrs from behind Henry.

He spins and stares into the darkness, “Who’s there?”

“Why...it’s just lil’ ole’ me,” the voice hums. She steps into the light.

“Who are you?” Henry asks, confused on who this person is.

“Beat it, Lynx,” Red says as she drops gracefully into the alley.

“Only one group calls me Lynx,” she muses, “Crimson?” she asks and laughs, “I thought Galactic Genesis spent time being villains, not following tiny twerps.”

“Galactic Genesis as in the villain ally team? I thought that was a hoax.” He looks to Crimson Vixen, “ _you’re_ a part of that team?”

Red doesn’t get to answer as Lynx lets out a gleeful giggle, “Oh it’s real. Only the best villains, those with the biggest brains and some sort of imagined moral high ground were invited to join Dark Swan’s team of miscreants.” She pauses and gives Red a once over as she adds, “Prettiest brains and prettiest bodies on Galactic Genesis. Now,” she halts for effect, “ _what_ are you doing following around some half-grown hero?”

“Doesn’t matter what I’m doing, just get lost, Lynx,” Red says, positioning herself between the kid at the villain.

“Wait, Lynx?” Henry asks, “As in Scarlet Lynx?”

She preens, “So you _do_ know me,” she murmurs sweetly.

He scrunches his nose in confusion, “I didn’t realize you were so _old._ ”

Red has to reign in her laughter to a meager snort. “See? And here all I was gonna do was call you a prostitute. I mean, honestly, what kind of name is Scarlet Lynx?” Lynx growls and takes a menacing step forward. “I _guess_ the best names were already taken. It’s just unfortunate you got stuck with such an awful name.”

Lynx scoffs, “Says the wolf in fox clothing.”

Now it’s Red’s turn to growl and Henry feels the hairs on the nape of his neck stand at attention. Lynx was scary, but Crimson Vixen? Absolutely terrifying. “Get lost, _Kitty_ ,” she mocks, “Maybe go back to work, where they’ll pay to see you purr.”

“Oh, for you? I’d do it for free,” she hums seductively. Her eyes flash and Red feels her powers drain. She can’t look away and she finds herself losing her resolve to fight Lynx. _Why did I want to fight her? She’s great_ , she smiles, in a daze.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

“Crimson?” Henry asks, unsure as to what happened to the fiery woman who suddenly became a puddle of emotion. “Crimson?” he asks again, waving his hand in front of her face, fear spikes through his system.

“Don’t worry, dear,” the villain purrs, “Just relax,” she adds melodically.

“What’s wrong with her?” Henry asks, completely avoiding the villain’s singsong voice.

“Nothing,” she lies, “everything is going to be fine. Are you _sleeeeeeeepy_ , my dear?” she asks delicately.

“No,” Henry says unsure, confused as to what the heck was happening.

“Well, I can fix that, just look into my eyes.”

“What have you done to Crimson Vixen?!” Henry asks alarmed.

“She’s _fine_ ,” Lynx spits out. She grabs Henry by the shoulders and stares into his eyes.

“What’s wrong with your eyes?” Henry asks, watching the villain’s eyes spin like an illusion.

“Nothing. Why? Do you see something?” she asks sweetly.

“Ummmm...yeah, but if you’re sure you’re okay, I want to check on Crimson Vixen.”

Lynx lets out a rumble from deep within her chest as she lunges at Henry.

“What the-?” he starts as he is tackled to the ground. He gasps as her hands wrap around his throat. His pen is too far away for him to grab and he starts to see spots in his vision. He’s grabbing at Scarlet Lynx’s hands, hoping she’ll let him go. Instead, she lifts him off the ground and smashes his head into the pavement. And then there’s only darkness.

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

Red comes back to herself in time to see Scarlet Lynx disappear out the mouth of the alley. _Fuck_ , she thinks as she realized Lynx controlled her mind. She looks around for her tiny charge. _Double Fuck_ , her brain screams as she sees him lying on the ground in a puddle of blood. She reaches for her phone and groans when Swan doesn’t answer her phone on the first ring. When she finally answers Red grounds out the crossroads and hangs up.

It takes Emma three minutes to get to the alley, but it’s the longest three minutes of Red’s life.

She flits around the boy nervously, eventually settling on stealing a towel from a nearby restaurant to put pressure on the gash in his head. She sees his pen poke out of his pocket and wonders, _could it work?_

It doesn’t.

She tries to write _the kid’s head wound closes._ But it doesn’t take. _So it’s not a magic pen. Damn._ She puts the pen in her pocket and holds more pressure to the head wound and hopes Swan gets here soon.

After three agonizing minutes, Emma drops from the rooftop at the front of the alley, “What the hell?” she screams, running toward them when she sees the boy on the ground.

“It was Lynx,” Red explains, “She used her damn power to immobilize me and she must’ve attacked the kid. I don’t think her power worked on him, so she took him out.”

“I’ll kill her,” Emma promises as she assesses the boy in front of her. “But first, we’ve gotta get him to the hospital.”

“Can I carry him?” Red asks, unsure. She doesn’t want to mess up and injure him more than he already is.

Emma nods, “You’ll have to.”

Red carefully picks him up, mindful of his head. “We should stop and change,” she muses as she realizes they’re not in plain clothes, it wouldn’t do for two villains to be seen caring for a mini hero - it’d be bad publicity; bad for their image and renowned villains. “And maybe tell his Mom," she adds as they walk out of the alley.

“His mom?” Emma asks, confused.

“Yeah...he didn’t just pop up out of nowhere. He spawned from someone.” She pauses in her walking as her friend turns around. “Swany, you _do_ know where babies comes from right?”

“Shut up, ya big Shewolf,” she smiles when Red gasps in outrage, “I just didn’t know you knew where he lives. He shouldn’t have showed you that.”

“Well, he didn’t. He was very careful about protecting his identity.” When her friend just stares at her in confusion she continues, “But I always wanted to make sure he made it home safely, especially after that run-in with Smashman. And I just _happened_ to see his super hot mom follow him into the apartment and have words with him - I’m assuming because he was out past curfew - and then went to bed, alone.” She raised her eyebrows subjectively, “No other person’s things in the bedroom, and an unused side of the bed.” Emma looks at her friend as if she’s grown another head. “What?” Red asks innocently. “I’m not saying you should make a move tonight or anything; just saying she’s totally your type, you know, if you _did_ want to make a move at a future date or something.”

“Focus on carrying the kid to his house Red,” Emma says, following her friend through the alleys and shadows across town.

They walk up to a building and Red says the light is on in the right apartment and together, they shimmy up the fire escape with Henry safely between them.

Emma carefully pops the lock on a window into the apartment and helps Red get the boy inside. A blonde comes rushing in with a knife and screams when she sees Dark Swan and Crimson Vixen standing in the room. _She’s totally not my type,_ Emma thinks as she raises her hands in surrender.

 

\---  _Kathryn's POV_ \---

 

“Henry,” Kathryn gasps as she sees the unconscious boy in Crimson Vixen’s arms.

The women share a look, hearing his name for the first time, “Scarlet Lynx got to him and I couldn’t stop her,” Crimson Vixen says in shame.

“Oh my god,” Kathryn whispers as she sees the towel on Henry’s head soaked in blood. She reaches for her phone mumbling, “Pick up Gi,” as she listens to the ringing.

Dark Swan helps the brunette lay Henry on the bed and carefully takes off his pillowcase and places it over the wound.

Kathryn watches how gentle she is with Henry, it’s strange but she’s more worried about getting Regina on the phone.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“Kathryn I’m in the elevator, I’ll see you in a minute,” she says as she answers the phone. The blonde represses a sob. “Kathryn?”

“It’s Henry,” she chokes out.

“What happened?” Regina asks, fear freezing her in place. She watches the elevator rise to their floor and she’s never realized how slow it moves. It feels like forever before the doors open and she rushes into her apartment. She makes it to Henry’s doorway and all she can see is her baby boy on his bed, blood covering his shirt and bedding. “Oh Henry,” she cries before rushing to him. “What happened?” she asks again, examining his wound.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

Shit. shit. _Shit. SHIT._ Of fucking course this would be his mom. The gorgeous ER doctor that worked wonders on her arm. Emma worries her lip as she focuses her attention on the small boy on the bed who somehow wormed his way into her heart. She doesn’t try to hide her pride as she thinks about this boy, Henry, being the only one to thwart her plans recently.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“Scarlet Lynx got ahold of him,” an unknown voice answers quietly.

“The supervillain?” Regina asks in shock. Her eyes move to the unknown person in the room. She jumps up when she sees Dark Swan on the other side of the bed, gazing at Henry. Her eyes shift to see Crimson Vixen in the corner, wringing her hands in front of her. “What the hell?” she asks, her powers suddenly on high alert.

No one answers.

“What the hell is going on?” She asks, her voice raising an octave.

“Well, um...you see….so…” Crimson started nervously.

“Your son is a Wannabe super,” Dark Swan says, not mincing words.

“A what?” Regina asks, looking to see if Henry’s wound can wait a minute for her to get rid of these vicious villains.

“They call him The Author.”

“The Author? The biggest superhero sweeping the city?” Kathryn asks, disbelief saturating her tone.

“Yeah, he’s been doing quite the job cleaning up the city,” Dark Swan answers with a small smile.

“And you’re here to what, stop him?” Regina asks, defensive.

“What? No, we brought him back here instead of taking him to the ER because we wanted to make sure you knew about this. But now we have to get him to the hospital, he needs a doctor.”

“I _am_ a doctor,” Regina says, standing up and staring down Dark Swan, showing no fear. “Kathryn, get me my kit from the bathroom.” The blonde slips from the room after looking between the three women, two about to fight above Henry and one worrying in the corner. She moves as fast as she can.

“I know that,” Dark Swan says.

“And how would you know that,” Regina asks, suspicious as she eyes the blonde across from her.

“Here it is, Gi,” Kathryn says as she rushes back into the room.

“He needs a doctor and a team of nurses,” Dark Swan argues. “He needs round-the-clock supervision and someone to stitch up that gash in his head.”

“I think I know what my son needs,” Regina bristles. “You two can leave now, we’ve got this.”

“I’m going to have to disagree. You’re not thinking straight,” Dark Swan argues, “he needs to go to the hospital.” She reaches for Henry but finds herself sliding away from the bed and looks up to see the brunette holding her hand out toward her.

“Telekinesis?” she asks quietly. “What the hell?” Something pokes at the back of her memory but when she focuses on it, it disappears. She tries to move against the force, but she’s stuck, far away from Henry.

“Get out,” Regina says, moving to stand between Henry’s bed and Dark Swan.

“He needs to go to a hospital,” Dark Swan grounds out.

“I will heal him here, away from the scrutiny and questions of a hospital,” Regina says, leaving no room for disagreement.

Dark Swan pauses, “Telekinesis _and_ healing power? That’s unheard of.”

“Or not heard of in a very long time,” Crimson muses from the corner of the room.

“What are you talking about?” Dark Swan asks, looking to her friend and missing the way the doctor flinches and tenses.

“You _know_ ,” Crimson starts, “It’s just as easy to hurt the body as it is to heal it. And who better to properly destroy a body than one who knows how to fix it up?” Swan gives a confused look as she tries to figure out who Red was talking about. “Maybe someone who used to remove hearts and burn people from the inside out?”

Swan gasps, “The Evil Queen?” She turns on Regina, “You’re- you’re The Evil Queen?” She pauses, “Rumor had it that you died.”

“She did,” Regina says, pointedly avoiding Dark Swan’s look. She turns her attention back to her son as she moves back to his side. She sends a glare to Dark Swan when she moves to be by Henry’s side. Swan remains at the foot of the bed, watching as Regina begins healing his head wound. When it’s healed and she’s satisfied there won’t be a mark, she checks him for a concussion. Another moment has him perfectly healthy once again. He’ll need rest, but his body is fine now. She stands and begins to roll him so she can remove the dirty bedding from his bed. It’s harder than it looks.

“Here, let me,” Swan says softly, reaching to pick Henry up in her arms.

Regina freezes but says nothing as she realizes how gently the villain is holding her son, “He can’t stay here with these dirty sheets,” she says finally. “I’ll move him into my room for now.”

She moves to take him from the villain, she still feels nervous while Swan holds her son in her arms. “I’ll move him,” Swan says as she steps into the hallway and moves down the hall to place Henry safely on the bed and under the covers. She steps back into the hallway to see Regina talking quietly to her blonde friend, watching Swan’s every move.

Regina sends her friend into Henry’s room to pull the sheets and place them in the washer.

“He’s tucked in, safe and sound,” Dark Swan says as she steps into the kitchen.

“No thanks to you,” Regina huffs.

Swan scoffs, “I’ll have you know, I received a phone call to come help Henry. If you want someone to blame, let’s find Scarlet Lynx and make her pay for what she did. I don’t care who she is, she went after a child, someone she _knew_ was a child. It’s unacceptable.” Regina says nothing, instead moving to wipe down the counters, something she does when she’s nervous. “Soooo, you’re The Evil Queen,” she adds after an awkward pause.

Again, Regina says nothing.

“But- everyone said you were killed in combat. By...by the Dragon.”

“The Dragon?” Regina asks, looking up in confusion, “Mal?” She pauses and laughs, “Oh dear, I was hardly in danger when Mal was around.”

“But supervillains don’t usually get along,” Swan says, confused. “At least they’re not supposed to.” A pause. “We’re the anomaly.”

Regina scoffs, “And who told you that? A hero?”

“No,” the blonde says, dejected. She looks down at the ground. She regains her confidence and murmurs, “but I know I work better alone.”

Another scoff from the brunette, “You work better alone, yet you run the greatest ring of supervillains this city has ever seen.”

“You’ve heard about us?”

Regina rolls her eyes and mocks awe, “Galactic Genesis.”

Now it’s Emma’s turn to scoff, “You talk big, but you used to be a supervillain. The worst of the worst if I remember correctly.”

“I suppose that was the rumor. At least I wasn’t bested by a child, Swan,” Regina mocks.

“Using my super name doesn’t bother me, _Your Majesty_.”

Regina shrugs and stares with an unfocused gaze, “Seems fitting since I don’t know your real name. Even though you know mine.” She turns her attention back to cleaning the spotless kitchen.

After an awkward pause, Swan hops onto the counter across from Regina, with the island standing between them, and asks, “So, why’d you leave?”

Regina eyes her position on her counter but chooses to ignore it, for now. “The situation turned into an opportunity. Mal and I were attempting to take over Manhattan by cursing the statues to move when no one was looking at them. They were supposed to move people from one spot to another within the city. Merely parlor tricks, really. But, eventually when you’re walking on Fifth Avenue and wind up in the Bronx, people get upset, even worried. Unfortunately, The Huntress and her crew stole our statues and our credit. Claimed _they_ were the ones to come up with the idea. We decided to retaliate, and get our statues back, but we were ambushed.” She pauses and shakes her head, “We barely made it out alive, even lost a few of our own in that fight. It wasn’t long after that Henry came into my life. I knew I wanted to do better for my son, I wanted to _be_ better for him. So, I stopped being The Evil Queen and became a doctor. I chose to start saving people instead of destroying them.”

“Sounds awful,” Swan says, “having a day job, saving people, working with people. Too much effort.”

“And yet, it’s worth it,” Regina says as she slows her cleaning. She sighs and throws the rag into the sink, “Or it was.” She shakes her head, “Henry was supposed to stay away from this life. He was supposed to be safe here.”

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

“Well, it’s not uncommon for kids to inherit powers from their parents,” Swan offers softly.

Regina gives a self-deprecating laugh, “This isn’t something you can nurture into someone.” When Dark Swan gives her a confused look she explains, “Henry’s adopted. He came into my life when he was three weeks old.”

Swan nods, “Well, then you’re both very lucky to have found one another.”

She receives an odd look from Regina but ignores it. She wishes she had found someone to adopt her when she was young. Maybe she would’ve turned out different.

“You would’ve,” Regina says quietly. When Swan looks up in shock she shrugs, “Sorry, but you were screaming your thoughts. It’s kind of hard to tune out.”

“You can get inside my head?” Dark Swan asks, suddenly very tense.

Regina shrugs, “If you can move things with your mind, you can hear and see things too. At least I can. I’m sorry, I should’ve tried harder to ignore what you were thinking.”

“Have you always been able to read people’s minds?”

Another shrug, “I suppose. It was a hassle when it first started, but at The Evil Queen’s prime, it was almost fun to mess with people by listening to what they were thinking. Now it’s just exhausting.” She pauses in thought, “Although it is helpful to distract people in order to help them cope with the pain when they are in the ER.”

“So can you read all my thoughts?” Dark Swan asks.

“Yeah, I suppose if I dug around enough. I don’t like that feeling though. I’ve spent many years working to not go through someone’s most private thoughts. It’s sometimes hard to turn off, but that’s usually just current thoughts,” Regina answers honestly.

“Are you reading my thoughts right now?”

“Do you want me to?” Regina challenges.

Dark Swan shakes her head and swings her feet, “I take it the kid doesn’t know your past?” she asks, changing the subject.

“The kid, has a name, and-” she pauses, her face falls as she realizes, “And you know his real name, his secret identity; and where he lives. Oh god-” she starts to panic.

“Hey, hey,” Dark Swan says, holding her hands up in surrender, “I’m not going to hurt him, and I wouldn’t betray him like that. He’s still so young.”

“And he’ll eventually grow up,” Regina challenges. “What then? When will you decide he’s old enough to not need your protection, or when you’ll think it’s time for him to fight you on his own. What happens when he’s no longer little and comes after you to protect his city?” Regina’s voice continues to rise as she panics.

“That won’t happen,” Dark Swan promises, “His secret is safe with me.”

Regina scoffs, “Excuse me for thinking that promise means nothing.”

Dark Swan hops off the counter, “You can believe whatever you want, but I won’t betray him. I know how important a secret identity can be.”

“And what would you know about a secret identity?” Regina asks suspiciously.

“Just because Dark Swan is seen at all hours of the day doesn’t mean I don’t have my own identity,” the blonde says as she moves around the island to look Regina in the eye.

Regina looks unsure, lifts her hand to prevent the villain from moving closer. She doesn’t trust her, not by a long shot.

Dark Swan gives an odd look but goes no further, instead she looks to the fridge and sees pictures of the two brunettes, and even of the other blonde that was in the apartment when she first got here.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“I should go check on Henry,” Regina says as she moves toward her bedroom. She brushes against the blonde as she tries to move around her. She hears a sharp intake of breath and looks to see the villain tense. Her eyebrows draw together, _why does she look like she’s in pain?_ “Is everything alright?” she asks.

Dark Swan nods and releases a breath through gritted teeth, “Yup, it‘s all good.”

“Are you hurt?” Regina asks, taking a step back toward the villain. If she was injured while caring for her son, the least Regina could do was heal her.

“Nah, it’s an old injury, just a little sore I guess,” Dark Swan offers in explanation.

“Well, here, let me heal it. It’s the least I can do,” Regina offers as she motions to Dark Swan’s arm.

“Oh no, don’t worry about it,” Dark Swan says, trying to move away.

“Nonsense,” Regina insists. When the villain refuses again, her mouth sets in a hard line, “Stop being so stubborn and accept help.”

Dark Swan doesn’t scare easily, or at all for that matter. But she finds herself losing resolve to stop the brunette from helping her. “Get out of my head,” she mumbles as she flops down on a stool at the island.

Regina chuckles, “I’m not in your head.”

Swan is confused, “Then why am I not fighting back?”

“That’s something you have to ask yourself,” Regina answers as she helps Dark Swan slide off her black leather jacket. She sees a bandage across her bicep and feels something spark up her spine. It’s not fear, but it’s not excitement either. She takes a deep breath and removes the bandage off the arm. _Someone really took care of this wound. It’s practically medical_. “Are you a doctor?” she asks as she unwinds the bandage.

“No,” Dark Swan answers without looking at Regina.

“Well, whoever took care of this did a wonderful-” she stops when she removes the bandage and sees the wound.

“Nobody likes it when you toot your own horn,” Dark Swan says quietly, still avoiding Regina’s gaze.

Regina grabs the villain’s chin and brings it in front of her so they’re eye-to-eye. She stares into those green eyes, beautiful eyes she thought she’d never forget. She searches for something she doesn’t understand what, but when she finds it, she knows. “Emma?” she asks quietly.

“Hi,” Emma says, pulling away from Regina to lower her mask and hood, shaking free the rest of her curls.

“You’re Dark Swan?” Regina asks, not ready to accept that answer.

Emma shrugs, “Yup, I’d apologize for hiding this from you, but...you know, you kinda hid stuff too. And that’s the whole point of a secret identity, right? It’s a secret.”

Regina doesn’t know what to say, she can’t process what’s going on. She steps back, she can’t handle this right now. A woman she was beginning to care about is a supervillain? One of the worst? No, she can’t handle this right now. Emma lied. She kept a lot of important information from Regina.

“A bit hypocritical, huh Gi?” Kathryn asks from the doorway.

Regina whips her head around to glare at her friend, “Get out of my head,” she grounds out.

“Get out of your own head,” she bites back. She struts into the kitchen, grabs a bottle of wine, two glasses, and wraps her arm around Crimson Vixen’s and drags her onto the patio. “Don’t screw it up!” she calls and shuts the patio door.

“She can hear thoughts too?” Emma asks softly.

Regina scoffs, “Only mine,” she says through gritted teeth. “Apparently it had something to do with our time as children and me always being in her head and sharing my thoughts.” She laughs mirthlessly, “Made for quite a lot of fun during classes.”

“The ultimate note-passers,” Emma says, equally unamused.

They’re both trying too hard to pretend all this new information doesn’t bother them.

They’re lying. To themselves and to each other. And neither knows which is worse.

After a pregnant pause Emma says, “So you have a kid.”

“So, you run the biggest criminal ring in the city,” Regina counters.

“You used to be the worst criminal in the history of the city,” Emma responds with narrowed eyes.

“Key word: _used_ to. That part of me is gone. I gave that up for Henry. You’re still actively trying to hurt people.”

“I have _never_ wanted to hurt innocents,” Emma defends. “That was never part of the plan. Ever.”

“And yet it’s always the price to pay,” Regina retaliates.

“I didn’t _choose_ this life. This life was thrown at me. I was able to get away, but not from everything. So, yes, I am still a villain, but I have a moral code. I always try to prevent innocent casualties. I even call for help when there are innocents injured.”

“Yes, I know,” Regina says off-handed before she freezes. She’s not supposed to know that.

“You do?” Emma asks in confusion.

Regina nods, “I, I uh, I’m a healer, and I’ve been there when you’ve asked for help.”

“Really?” Emma asks, “When?”

Regina fidgets with her hands, “Recently?” she offers quietly. “I feel horrible about it, but I had to protect myself. I had to protect Henry. And all I knew about Dark Swan was that she found out The Evil Queen was alive and would have gone digging around where she shouldn’t. I’ve heard you’re a tech wizard,” she smiles, suddenly thinking about Emma and Kathryn going head-to-head over hacking and digging up dirt. The smile fades from her face, “I shouldn’t have done anything, but I was just so scared for Henry. When I ran into you at the bank, I just- I just panicked.”

“The bank?” Emma inquires, unsure as to what’s going on. “The fuzzy memories...that was...you?”

“That was me,” Regina responds, ashamed.

“I don’t- I don’t remember much,” Emma explains.

“I can...um…” Regina pauses, twisting her hands together in front of her, “I can give you those memories back. If you want of course. I don’t want to be digging into your mind more than necessary, so it’s totally up to you.”

“You can give me my memories back?”

“Well, not exactly, but I can give you mine, and that will most likely trigger yours. They’re still there, just fuzzy, ambiguous, and unsure. With more memories, they’ll clear up.”

Emma nods, “Okay.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yeah, I don’t like not remembering something,” Emma answers, more truth lacing those words than either of them were prepared for.

“I am truly sorry, Emma. It wasn’t fair for me to do that to you. Having control like that over your memories when they were not mine to take.”

Emma says nothing and Regina wishes she could take it all back. But she doesn’t have regrets; at least not for anyone other than Henry. But that’s a different story. She steps forward and into Emma’s space. She places her hands on Emma’s temples and sends her memories into the blonde.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

The level of connection is intense, to say the least. Extraordinary is more like it. Emma can _feel_ what Regina felt as if it were her own emotions. It’s one thing to hear how guilty someone feels about something, it’s another to feel it. Emma feels Regina’s guilt, but also her fierce protection instinct settle at the bottom of her stomach. Regina’s belief that this is the only way to keep Henry safe, it knocks the wind out of Emma. She almost lost her balance off the stool in Regina’s kitchen, but Regina dropped her hands from Emma’s temples to her shoulders, keeping her in place. “Sorry,” she whispers, “it’s quite the shock.”

“Understatement,” Emma murmurs, barely audible.

Regina makes sure Emma is stable in her seat before dropping her arms and stepping away.

Emma reaches out and grabs her wrists, surprising Regina but halting her movements anyway. “Those were your _real_ feelings that night?”

Regina nods, unable to meet Emma’s eyes. “They’ll fade soon. Your memories will take over and you can ignore the ones that aren’t yours.”

“And if I don’t want to?” Emma asks.

“What?” Regina lifts her head in confusion.

Emma laughs, “Is that so surprising?”

“Yes,” Regina answers honestly. “Most people don’t appreciate when you mess with their memories and go digging around in their head.” She lowers her head again in shame.

Emma releases one of Regina’s wrists to sneak a finger under her chin, lifting it until they’re eye-to-eye, “Hi,” she whispers when they lock eyes.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“Hi,” Regina responds, barely making a sound.

“I don’t know how I feel about you inside my head, yet, but I understand why you did it. You were only protecting Henry. Which I can understand.” She smiles. It grows when she sees a smile sneaking across Regina’s face.

“You can?” Regina asks, unsure.

Emma nods, “Yeah, I felt what you felt. You’re the ultimate Mama Bear, you know that?”

Regina can’t help the bubble of laughter that escapes her chest. “So I’ve heard.”

“I don’t blame you,” Emma says, “Henry’s a great kid.”

“Yeah,” Regina says, unable to keep her mind from thinking about Henry and Emma, they must’ve created quite the bond in the recent weeks.

“We have,” Emma answers. Her eyes widen comically, “You didn’t talk out loud, did you?”

Regina shakes her head, equally as shocked as Emma. “That’s never happened before,” she says truthfully.

“What are you talking about? I thought you said your friend can read your thoughts too?”

“Yes, but that’s after we spent years communicating and being inseparable best friends. Not once for a brief moment and only sharing a memory. That’s...well, that’s something I’ve never heard of before,” Regina answers honestly.

“Now _that_ makes me feel special,” Emma says smugly.

Regina rolls her eyes, “Easy,” she hushed.

“I don’t do easy,” Emma utters.

You could hear a pin drop. They’re still standing in each other’s space, close enough to feel each other’s breath on their cheeks. Neither is sure who made the first move, but suddenly, they’re entwined, their mouths testing boundaries and hoping for a tiny gasp or moan to escape their partner.

There are squeals from outside, but neither woman notices. It starts out soft, both testing the waters, seeing what makes the other respond. Hands make their way to hair and hips, holding each other as close as possible. Incessant mouths part trembling lips, shaking with a giddiness neither had felt before. It shows that every other kiss before had been wrong. They’re wanting; wanting closer, closer, _closer_ , nothing will ever be close enough.

Regina pushes Emma away, breaking contact and trying to push the fog away from her mind. _What was that?_ she wonders to herself as she tries to regain feeling in her legs. No one has ever made her _tingle_ before from just a kiss. “I’m sorry,” Regina says with her breathing begins to return to normal.

“I’m not,” Emma responds, confused as to why Regina stopped them.

“You’re still reeling from everything you felt when I shared my memories. I won’t take advantage of your confusion,” she spells out, gripping the counter to keep her balance.

“I’m not confused,” Emma explains. When Regina looks like she’s ready to disagree, Emma steps into her personal space once again, “I’ve wanted to do that since the first night we met in the hospital. Right before I left.”

Emma must’ve thought this information would reassure Regina, but instead her body grows even more taut. “That’s because when you refused the IV, I helped ease the pain you would feel. I knew even with an incredibly high pain tolerance, you’d be unable to stay still. So, I used some of my power to ease your pain and keep you sitting still.”

“Okay…?” Emma asks unsure what Regina is trying to say.

“I made a connection between us that day; that’s why you wanted to kiss me. It wasn’t real, it was merely because I helped with pain management,” she tries to explain, upset at how awful it makes her feel. As if she was merely using Emma - which she wasn’t - but that doesn’t make the guilt any easier to deal with.

Emma raises an eyebrow. “How often do you use your power to ease pain?”

“I’m not sure,” Regina answers, eyebrows drawn down in confusion.

“And how often does this ‘connection’ as you called it, affect those patients?”

Regina shrugs, “I have no idea.”

“But it’s not every time, right?” When Regina nods, Emma laughs, “So, don’t play off what I’m feeling as some drastic response to something you’ve done before even though you’ve never seen this reaction.” Regina says nothing and Emma sighs, stepping even closer to Regina, who’s still pinned against the island. She’s now pressing herself against Regina, “I’m making this decision,” she explains, “of my own sound mind.” She presses a kiss to Regina’s cheek, “I’m thinking on my own,” a kiss under her ear lobe, causing Regina to gasp - Emma will have to remember that. “I’m comprehending this situation,” a kiss to her jaw, “and I understand _exactly_ what I’m doing.” She trails kisses down Regina’s neck to where it meets her collarbone, causing Regina to groan when she bites into her skin.

Regina’s hands reach up and tangle in blonde curls, holding Emma in place. Although, she has no plans on moving until there’s a mark left behind to remind Regina of this choice every time she sees it. Before she’s finished, Regina’s pulling her up by her hair, “I better not have a mark,” she warns as she nips at Emma’s lip. Emma merely smiles and readjusts Regina’s scrubs. She groans and swats at the blonde who is pressing her against the counter.

They stand there, breathing each other in and staring into each other’s eyes. It’s the most intimate thing either of them has experienced in a very long time, if ever. Regina clears her throat, “I should probably go check on Henry,” she murmurs, waiting for Emma to take a step back.

Emma doesn’t move. “If I move, are you going to try and downplay what just happened as your powers making me crazy? Because if you are, I’m going to give you another hickey,” she warns.

Regina wants to be outraged, she _should_ be outraged, but she can’t stop the laughter that escapes her. Emma smiles and takes a step back. Regina grabs at her shirt, by her shoulder and at the side of her navel, and pulls the blonde against her. She knots her fists in Emma’s shirt, burying her hands under the dark jacket, and pulls her harder against her. Emma groans softly and allows herself to be drawn back to the dark haired woman, gathering her in her arms and kissing her with fervor. Emma’s tongue slips into Regina’s mouth, gentle yet insistent. Regina finally understands why people say kissing someone feels like melting because every part of her body softens against the blonde. All thoughts leave her, she only wants more of Emma. A knee makes its way between her legs and she groans, shamelessly grinding against it. It doesn’t matter that they’re practically on top of each other and Emma’s hands feel like they’re everywhere at once, Regina wants her closer.

Emma reaches around and grabs her ass, causing Regina to rub against the leg between hers again. She releases another moan and wraps a leg around Emma’s waist as Emma pulls her closer still. And as if doused with cold water, Regina pulls away from Emma’s lips. They rest their foreheads together, both catching their breath. Regina lowers her leg and puts a bit of space between them.

“Henry’s awake,” Regina whispers, kissing Emma’s lips quickly in apology.

“Damn it’s hot when you use your powers like that,” Emma says, holding tightly to Regina’s waist.

Regina laughs but leans back and attempts to make herself look less disheveled.

It doesn’t work.

 _When did my hair come free of its pony?_ she wonders to herself.

“Oh, that was a while ago,” Emma answers and then freezes, eyes wide in shock. She turns to see Regina, equally surprised, “You know, it _does_ sound a bit different when you think versus when you speak, but it’s hard to notice _before_ I answer,” she says with a nervous chuckle.

“I suppose we’ll have to work on controlling that ability.”

“If you want to see her again, just ask,” Kathryn says as she and Crimson make their way into the kitchen with empty glasses. Regina turns and glares at her friend but Kathryn merely shakes her head, “You’re not intimidating when you’re so bedraggled. Go clean yourself up before Henry sees you.” It could seem as if Kathryn was being obnoxious, and even rude, but Regina knows she’s just looking out for her. And Kathryn knows how Regina feels about being disheveled in front of Henry.

Regina shakes her head at her friend but slides out from between Emma and the counter. Before anyone has the chance to say anything else, a quiet voice calls, “Mom?”

“Coming Henry,” Regina calls. She turns to the other women in her kitchen before he calls again. She hooks her thumb, “I should-”

Kathryn nods, “I’ll show them out. Go check on Henry.” Regina offers a small smile to Emma before turning and heading in by Henry.

“Hi, Sweetie, how are you feeling?” she asks softly as she walks into her room and sitting on the edge of the bed next to Henry.

Henry’s sitting up against the headboard, with a hand to the back of his head, “How did I get in here?”

Regina chooses to answer his question with a question, “What do you remember?”

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

Henry doesn’t know how to answer that question. He thinks back to what he knows. He was doing his usual checks of the neighborhood. He could feel Crimson Vixen watching him. Then Scarlet Lynx showed up. She did something to Crimson Vixen and then she attacked Henry. And now he woke up in his mom’s bed. But it’s not like he could tell his _mom_ this. So he just sits there, uncomfortably quiet.

“Henry, I know about you being outside after curfew. And I know you ran into Scarlet Lynx,” Regina says when she realizes her son won’t tell her anything.

“You do?” Henry asks in disbelief.

Regina sighs, “Of course I know Henry, I’m your mother.”

Henry is silent for a moment, “That’s all I remember,” he answers honestly.

“What happened when you were with Scarlet Lynx?” Regina wonders aloud.

Henry shrugs, “She introduced herself and then tried to use her creepy eyes on me and when that didn’t work she grabbed my neck and hit my head.” He reaches up to rub against the back of his head. It hurt a little, but it’s not the giant hole he was expecting.

Regina puts a hand out but stops before she touches him, “May I?” she asks, motioning to his head and neck.

Henry nods and winces when her hand comes in contact with the bump at the back of his head. His nose scrunches when she shifts his t-shirt and sees bruises around his neck. “I’m sorry, Mom,” he apologizes when he sees her looking heartbroken.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

“I know, dear,” Regina answers, taking a deep breath.

“How did you find me?” Henry asks.

“I found you on the roof,” Kathryn answers seamlessly as she walks into the room with a tray balancing three mugs of hot chocolate. _I talked to Crimson Vixen, she told me that’s where she left him the other times she brought him home_ she tells Regina. _And they both left. Swan said not to tell him she was here. Not yet anyway._ Regina sighs, at least that’s one thing less she has to try and explain.

“But how did you know about Scarlet Lynx?” Henry inquires.

 _Damn that’s a good question_ Kathryn thinks to Regina as she tries to come up with a reason.

“Someone left a note,” Regina says with a shrug but then looks to her son, _better make this believable_ , “Who were you with?”

Henry shrugs but doesn’t answer. He looks around, “Why am I not in my own bed?”

His godmother chuckles when Regina freezes, drawing Henry’s gaze away from his mom and to Kathryn, “I decided to help out a bit and wash your sheets, and your mom was _adamant_ that you don’t lay on your bed without sheets.”

“So I need to put new sheets on?” he asks confused.

Kathryn nods, “Feel up to some cocoa and then helping me make the bed?”

“With cinnamon?” Henry asks.

Kathryn looks scandalized, “Well, of course! What are we, animals?”

Henry chuckles and takes a cup from the tray, “Any chance we can watch some tv until the cocoa’s gone, Mom?” he asks sweetly.

Regina looks from her son to her friend, both with puppy-dog-eyes. She sighs, “How can I say no?”

“You can’t!” Henry says excitedly as he scoots to the middle of the bed so both women can climb in around him. Regina grabs the remote and turns on a tv show while their finish their drinks.

Regina hardly sleeps. She spends most of her night lying in her bed worrying about Henry, checking on him to make sure he was alright, and worrying about her interaction with Emma.

“He’s alright,” Kathryn says softly from her spot on Regina’s couch.

Regina turns from Henry’s doorway and sighs at her friend, “Do you ever sleep?” she asks, exhausted.

“Nah,” Kathryn says as she stretches from her spot on the couch.

 _Ugh_ Regina groans as she moves to sit next to her friend.

“Can’t sleep?”

“A supervillain tried to kill my son and he was only saved because _another_ supervillain thought he needed protection as he’s apparently one of the most powerful superheroes at the moment,” she deadpans, “I think I’m allowed to worry and lose some sleep.”

“No one’s saying you don’t have a lot going on Regina,” Kathryn defends, “But you have to work tomorrow, and Henry has school. Nothing is going to change between now and when he wakes up in,” she looks to her watch and groans, “three hours?! Gi, you gotta get some sleep. Seriously, nobody needs an ER doc who is too exhausted to think straight. I swear, I’ll check on Henry every 10 minutes if it’ll help you sleep better.”

Regina nods, her head leaning back against the back of the couch.

 

\---  _Kathryn's POV_ \---

 

Kathryn says nothing more, hoping her friend could at least get a few hours of sleep before she needs to get Henry up and ready for school. She grabs her computer and begins typing away, trying to prevent a headline like _Young Superhero Gravely Injured After Run In With Scarlet Lynx_ because her godson doesn’t need to be outed as a Super, or as someone Scarlet Lynx attacked.

She does her best to keep it out of the headlines but one online publication gets the word out about a fight between two supers, neither named, but the article gave the location of the fight. She stands up and takes her phone into the spare bedroom she has claimed as her own. She closes the door and calls a friend. “I need you to run a clean-up. Whatever happens, the police cannot get any blood samples. Two Supers’ secret identities are on the line.” A pause. “No, I don’t care what you have to do, create a freaking thunderstorm if you have to, but make sure no one gets their hands on blood samples.” She gives the location and smiles when she gets confirmation that it’s being handled. She takes a deep breath before sneaking out of the room and back to her computer on the couch, next to her sleeping friend. She smiles, at least Regina is finally sleeping after her hectic night.

Her phone rings and she quickly stands and heads back into the bedroom. It’s been taken care of. Kathryn breathes a sigh of relief. Henry is safe. For now.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

Regina wakes with a start. She flies forward from her spot on the couch, causing Kathryn to give her an odd look. Regina places a hand over her heart and brushes her hair away from her face before exhaling and standing to check on Henry. When she sees he’s still sleeping soundly, she turns and moves into the kitchen, turning on the coffee pot; she’s going to need it today.

She brings two mugs into the living room and places one next to Kathryn’s computer. “Thanks Gi,” she says as she wraps two hands around her warm mug.

“Did you get any sleep?” Regina asks her friend.

Kathryn smiles but shakes her head, “No time,” and before Regina can say anything she continues, “I _did_ make sure that the attack site was cleaned so police couldn’t get any DNA samples.”

“Oh god,” Regina says horrified, “I can’t believe I didn’t think about that! What if they had his DNA? He’d be outed and he’s only a baby!”

“Regina,” Kathryn says calmly, waiting for her friend to look at her, “that won’t happen. I took care of it. No one will find Henry’s or Scarlet’s DNA to figure out their secret identities. They don’t even know _who_ was in the fight. I was able to stop most publications of the rumor, but one got out,” she looks down ashamed. Regina places a hand on her arm and Kathryn offers a small smile, “But the others were stopped. No one can even confirm the fight happened and _no one_ knows that the Author was involved _or_ that he’s a kid.”

Regina exhales, unsure of when she held her breath, but she tries to regulate her breathing and looks into Henry’s still-dark room, knowing he’s resting peacefully.

_Knock knock_

Both women freeze. Who the hell comes to an apartment door before the sun comes up?

Regina carefully sets her coffee mug on the table and stands, slowly moving toward the door. She feels Kathryn stand, equally wary of what might be on the other side of the door. Both have worst-case-scenarios running through their mind but neither are ready to calm each other’s fears. Regina looks through the peephole and sees nothing. She reaches out with her power to feel for someone else’s heartbeat, breathing, _anything_ to say someone else was with them. She feels nothing. Deliberately, she pulls the door open and finds no one. All she sees is a giant bouquet of flowers. _Well this is unexpected_ she thinks as she leans down to pick up the bouquet.

Kathryn squeals and a smile takes over her face as she claps her hands, “Oh this is so perfect! They’re beautiful,” she exclaims as she looks at the purple and yellow bouquet as Regina brings it in.

Regina is much more reserved in her reaction and attempts to tamper down her smile as she looks at the bouquet. She’s not the biggest fan of yellow, but when mixed with her favorite, purple, it looks absolutely beautiful.

“So many flowers,” Kathryn muses, “I wonder if they have any meaning.”

“They do,” Regina says simply.

“Care to elaborate, Miss I-worked-in-a-flower-shop-for-a-summer?” Kathryn challenges. Regina rolls her eyes, but before she can answer Kathryn adds, “Well, I can see the white, ummm, daffodils.”

Regina nods, “They mean new beginnings,” she explains.

“And, are those irises?” she asks confused.

“Meaning hope,” Regina points out.

Kathryn scoffs, “And a sign of royalty.” Regina gives her a confused look so Kathryn elaborates, “You’re not the only one who knows about flower meanings,” she says with a smirk. She chuckles when Regina’s eyebrows draw together, “She’s teasing you about being a queen,” she adds, unable to contain her laughter.

Regina rolls her eyes but moves her attention onto the next type of flower she sees, “White rose,” she says, “meaning worthiness.”

“Awwwww,” Kathryn coos, “She wants to be worthy for you!” Regina releases a sigh at her friend and looks to the final flower, “What are those yellow ones? Is that a Ranunculus?”

Regina nods, “Buttercups,” she says, supplying the type of ranunculus it is.

“What does it mean?” Kathryn prods.

“Attraction,” Regina explains, after a brief pause.

“Oh, you’ve found yourself a sweet and thoughtful nerd, Gi!” She giggles when her friend releases a deep sigh. “Oooooh look!” Kathryn says excitedly, as she points to the note resting between two buttercups.

Regina carefully picks up the card and opens it

_To new beginnings,_

_I want to spend the rest of my life proving my worth to you_

_I hope you feel this attraction too_

_I can’t wait to see you again, meet me for lunch outside the hospital_

_I’ll wait for you on the roof_

_xx_

“Oh. My. Gosh.” Kathryn says as she reads the card over Regina’s shoulder, “You totally found yourself a nerd.”

Regina scoffs, “ _You’re_ a nerd, Kathryn.” But she’s hardly listening, she’s focusing on the card in front of her. Is she being courted? A half smile has formed on her face without her permission, but she doesn’t even care. Emma wants to see her again. She hasn’t thought about dating since before Henry came into her life. At least not seriously.

“Pfft, this nerd fits your personality. Sending you flowers, that have _meaning_. This is fantastic!”

“Lower your voice,” Regina hisses.

“Can’t hide the love, Regina,” Kathryn sings as she moves back to the living room.

Regina sighs and runs a hand down her face, God, her friend could be annoying.

“Love you too!” Kathryn calls from the other room.

 _Get out of my thoughts_ Regina thinks with narrow eyes. Kathryn only laughs from her spot on the couch.

“Mom?” Henry calls from his doorway.

Regina steps out of the kitchen and smiles at her son, “Good morning, dear, did you sleep well?”

He nods and rubs at his eyes, “Why were you and Aunt Kat so loud?”

“I’m sorry, Henry, you’re aunt was a little excited. Would you like to get ready while I make breakfast?”

He nods again and moves back into his room. Regina sends her friend a glare and turns to move back into the kitchen to make breakfast.

By the time Henry is out of his room with his things for school, Regina has packed his lunch and his breakfast is waiting for him at his chair. She sets two more plates next to his for herself and Kathryn and the three of them sit to eat.

“When did those flowers get here?” Henry asks as he looks at the bouquet on the counter.

“Someone dropped them off this morning,” Regina says simply.

“Who are they from?” he wonders.

Regina pauses, unsure what she wants to say. It’s too new for her to talk to him about her relationship with Emma. What _is_ her relationship with Emma? “A friend,” she decides on.

“A friend,” Henry repeats, not buying it. When Regina merely nods, he gives a look that stops Regina in her tracks. If she didn’t know any better, she’d think that Henry was _entirely_ her son. Nurture was definitely stronger than nature in this case. “You have a new friend that sends you early morning flowers?” he asks, unimpressed.

Regina nods, “Apparently,” she adds with a shrug.

Henry doesn’t believe her for a second, but he turns his attention to his breakfast.

Regina gets dressed and takes Henry to school. Wishing him a good day before she turns around and heads back to their apartment to get ready for her own day. She returns to find Kathryn sleeping soundly in the guest room and smiles before heading to her own room to shower and get dressed. She finds herself putting lipstick on and placing it in her pocket to reapply later, even though she’ll spend her day is scrubs.

Her morning is rough. She sees a patient who needs her appendix removed, a patient with chest pains, and finally, a man who is in the ER every few weeks because he’s convinced he’s dying. “Mr. Thompson, I don’t know how else I can say this,” she says after another hour of him arguing. “We’ve done every test we can, Terry. We can’t see anything causing these pains.” She’s even used a bit of her power to see if there’s something they’re missing. Nothing. Terry argues. Regina sighs, “Listen, we might have missed something, but we have definitely not missed anything urgent. You can set up an appointment with your regular physician and do some more tests.” Eventually, she calms him down enough to send him home and drags her feet to the break room.

“You look awful,” Kathryn says from her spot on the break room couch.

“Do you _ever_ work?” Regina snarks.

Kathryn lets out a laugh, “I’ll have you know that I’ve been fielding calls all morning about the incident with Rogers that happened yesterday.”

Regina shudders, “Why they hired that man, I’ll never know.”

“He was a damn good surgeon,” Kathryn protests.

“ _Was_ , Kathryn,” Regina clarifies. “Until he decided to go swimming with the sharks and lost his hand. Now he’s just here to make the nurses feel uncomfortable and sit at his desk.”

“You know he’s a teaching surgeon now,” Kathryn says with a shake of her head. Regina rolls her eyes and Kathryn changes the subject. She stands from her spot and makes her way to her friend, who is standing next to the fridge drinking a glass of water. She pulls Regina’s hair out of its ponytail and tries to run her fingers through it. Regina swats at her hands but she continues to move the hair, “Are you ready for your lunch date?”

Regina freezes, “Oh God.”

“You forgot,” Kathryn deadpans with a shake of her head.

Regina turns to look at her reflection in the stainless steel appliances, “I’m a trainwreck. All I was thinking about was taking a quick nap on my break, but I’m meeting Emma.”

Kathryn pulls a tiny bag from its hiding spot on the couch, “I figured.”

Regina watches her pull out a bag of makeup and chuckles, of course her friend has her back.

“Oh course,” Kathryn says as she begins to touch up her friend’s face.

Eventually Regina has enough. “Alright, Kathryn, as much as I appreciate this, the only time Emma has seen me was while looking bedraggled and half asleep, I doubt it’ll change much.”

Kathryn scoffs, “As if you, Regina Mills, do not believe in the power of makeup.” Regina smiles and pulls her tube of lipstick from her pocket. “Now _that’s_ the Regina I know,” Kathryn adds with a laugh.

“Don’t put too much on, wouldn’t want it to wipe off to the rest of your face while you’re making out like a teenager.

Regina rolls her eyes, puts on her lipstick, and shakes her hair around, trying to get her wild curls to cooperate. She decides this is as good as it’s going to get and moves toward the elevator that will take her to the roof.

“Good luck! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Kathryn calls after her. There’s a pause, “Which means there’s a lot you can do!” she adds with a chuckle, “I expect details,” she hears as she walks through the door.

“Go to work, Kathryn,” Regina tells her. A laugh is her only response. Regina hits the up button, _this is it_.

She makes it to the roof and takes a deep breath before opening the door and allowing her eyes to adjust to the sun. She sees a shadow and moves toward it. It comes into view and Regina sees blonde curls as Emma faces away from her.

“Hello,” Regina says as she waits for Emma to turn around.

“Hey,” Emma says, finally facing Regina.

Regina sees she’s in an outfit similar to the one she was in the first time they met. She smiles when she notices the now-infamous leather jacket atop her shirt.

“How was your morning?” Emma asks as she takes in the appearance of Regina.

“The patients were hell, but I seem to have a secret admirer that left a beautiful bouquet of flowers on my doorstep this morning,” she answers with a smirk.

“Sounds like a pretty fantastic way to start your day,” Emma muses, “That secret admirer must be really awesome.”

Regina chuckles and shakes her head fondly, “I just wish I knew who it was so I could properly thank them.”

“And what might this thank you entail?” Emma asks with raised eyebrows.

“Well,” Regina pauses, stepping closer to Emma, blocking her in between her body and the parapet, “I suppose it would have to be fitting for the person. And I did have a bit of a clue, they left some kisses at the end of the letter.”

Emma smiles, “Wow, they must really want to kiss you,” she says, never taking her eyes off Regina’s dark red lips.

“Hmmmm,” Regina considers, “I guess I could-” but before she can finish her thought Emma’s lips are on hers. She sighs into the kiss, her body molding into the blonde’s as she lifts her hands up to Emma’s shoulders to play with the curls at the back of her neck. Emma’s hands fly to her hips and she holds her close. Regina threads her hands through Emma’s princess curls and holds her tight. She meant to tease Emma, to get her on edge the way she had done to Regina last night, but her attempt was all for naught because as soon as Emma’s lips are on hers she can’t control herself. What was supposed to be innocent and teasing quickly jumped to passionate, hot, and demanding. Regina can’t think straight, she can’t get enough of Emma. It’s Emma that pulls back, resting her forehead against Regina’s. They’re breathing each other in. Emma whispers, “Regina,” stretching each letter and enunciating each syllable as if Regina’s name was the best thing she’s ever tasted. Regina smiles and removes her hands from Emma’s hair and places them on either side of her face. She’s never loved her name more than the way Emma just said it. She leans in for another kiss, this one chaste, just a brush of her lips. “They were lovely flowers,” she whispers into Emma’s lips.

Emma laughs and leans back to look at Regina. “Damn, that is some good lipstick you have; it hardly even smudged!” she exclaims.

It’s Regina’s turn to laugh, “Well, I’m glad you approve.”

“I suppose I’ll just have to try harder next time,” Emma grumbles.

Regina smiles and kisses her lips to take the pout away. Her right hand resting below Emma’s ear, her thumb rubbing against her cheek. She continues to pepper kisses all over her face, following her cheek bone to her ear, biting the bottom of her earlobe and smiling when she hears Emma groan and feels her grip tighten on her hips. She kisses down her jaw and to her lips where she finds a smile. _Such a beautiful smile_ she thinks.

“I’ll show it to you every time I see you,” Emma answers aloud to Regina’s thoughts.

Regina pulls back, very serious “And we’re going to have to have a serious talk about the privacy of one’s thoughts now that you can hear mine whenever you want.”

Emma smiles, “I kind of like knowing what you’re thinking. It’s hot.”

Regina shakes her head but allows a smile to take over her face, “Then I suppose it will be even better when I _choose_ to let you in instead of you just poking in whenever you want.”

“Alright, if you insist,” Emma says, linking her hands behind Regina’s back.

Regina’s arms travel from Emma’s neck down her spine, around her waist and back up her arms to rest on her shoulders. She smiles and asks, “So, lunch?”

Emma laughs, “Yes! You’re probably hungry,” she pulls away from Regina, keeping one hand wrapped around her waist. “I have a friend who might actually be the best cook on the planet,” she pauses, “I think I might have mentioned her before, Tiana?” When Regina nods she continues, “We talked about her bear claws. But she also makes a _stellar_ gumbo. Since I didn’t know what food you like, I figured pizza was a safer bet.”

“Wow, nice sales pitch,” Regina says with a scoff.

“Ha. Ha,” Emma deadpans, squeezing Regina’s hip. “Next time, I’ll bring the gumbo.”

“You’re very confident in your ability to score a second date,” Regina muses with a smirk.

“It’s damn good gumbo,” Emma responds. She lets go of Regina to pull a picnic basket from a spot Regina had missed when she first walked out onto the roof. She opens the basket and pulls out small pizza boxes, drinks, and a bowl filled with salad.

“Salad with pizza?” Regina asks with raised eyebrows.

Emma shrugs, “I didn’t know if you were a pizza or salad kind of girl, so I brought both.”

Regina’s smile feels like it could split her face in half, that’s really sweet. “I’m going to be honest with you, I like to eat healthy, especially in front of Henry, but I could use some pizza,” she says as she takes a bite.

They sit on the rooftop, eating pizza, and laugh as they share crazy stories. Regina talks about Henry, Emma shares her light-hearted moments of being a juvenile delinquent with her friend Ruby as teenagers, and Regina talks about her friendship with Kathryn and, although they didn’t cause as much trouble as Emma and Ruby, she had some of her own delinquent moments. Then, things get a little more intimate. They move closer together and begin whispering about some of their craziest stories as super villains. Emma talks about her first run in with a well-known hero, and Regina tells a story about the time she decided to poison an apple against Snow White and _failed_ and how she came back from it.

She can’t believe how hard Emma laughed when she explained the Snow White was nothing but a prissy princess of a “hero” and needed an ego check.

“I know right!” she screamed and couldn’t control her laughter. “Why is she such a terrible hero?”

Regina shrugged, “Because she’s in it for herself.”

“You know, Crimson is still trying to defeat her, but I don’t think she’s all that into it anymore, she just brushes Snow White off because she’s not _technically_ awful. Crimson knows her - I think they grew up together,” she adds. Regina knows she’s hiding something but ignores the feeling pricking the back of her neck. “Although if you talked to her, I’m sure she’d step up and out her as the anti-hero she really is.”

“I’ve had to let a lot of my previous anger go since Henry came into my life,” Regina explains simply. “I still have difficult times, but thinking about my son and the world I want him to experience usually calms me down.”

“So you _don’t_ want to see Snow White fall?” Emma asks dubiously.

“I mean, I wouldn’t be upset if something like that happened,” Regina clarifies, “but I don’t think I’d actively attempt to hurt her anymore.”

“Liar,” Emma accuses with a smirk.

Regina shrugs coyly. “Guess you’ll just have to believe me.”

“Or not,” Emma responds with a chuckle as she looks at Regina’s face.

The emotions swirling there made Regina gasp. Before she could think about all the emotions she finds, Emma leans forward and captures Regina’s lips in a kiss.

It was a soft kiss, Emma’s mouth warmly caressing Regina’s so tenderly, she opens her mouth with a low moan. This was exactly what Emma wanted. She tilts Regina’s chin and the kiss turns hungry, a mess of teeth and tongues. Emma shifts her body so she’s straddling Regina’s legs and gently leans her back, holding her head until it lays softly on the rooftop. She smiles from above Regina and whispers, “Hi.”

Regina can’t hide her laugh as she realized how quickly they went from a gentle kiss to grinding against each other on the ground. But just as quickly as the thought came, it was gone and Emma began kissing her again. Her kisses travel down her neck, warmth emanating from each spot her lips touch Regina’s skin, fire spreading through her body with each kiss. She feels her breath leave her body as Emma continues kissing her, out to her shoulder and back up her neck to her ear. She pulls away to stare and Regina and she feels herself blush under the scrutiny. She sees softness and something tender before the look changes, gleaming with something else. Emma leans forward and kisses her, suddenly demanding. Regina feels warmth everywhere, as if every part of Emma was on fire, and she couldn’t get enough. Her grip tightened against Emma’s jacket, pulling her closer. Emma’s body gentle, yet firm against hers on the ground. Emma tilts her head, deepening their kiss as Regina lifts one of her knees between Emma’s.

Emma can barely groan before an obnoxious beeping distracts the women. She pulls back to see where the noise is coming from and Regina sighs as she taps her watch to shut off the timer.

“Sorry,” she murmurs from beneath Emma, “I didn’t want to be late getting back to work.”

“You totally would have been,” Emma answers with pride but carefully extracts herself from above Regina and helps her up.

Together, they clean up from their picnic and, when they’re done, they awkwardly stand next to each other, neither wanting their date to end. “This was fun,” Regina says with a bright smile.

“Yeah, I had a good time,” Emma agrees.

“Let’s do this again,” Regina blurts out.

Emma chuckles, “Are you asking me on a date, Regina Mills?” she asks.

“I am asking you on a _second_ date, dear,” Regina clarifies. “It’s only fair since you planned the first.”

“I’d like that,” Emma says, “I’ll text you and we can set something up.”

“I’d need to give you my phone number,” Regina says.

“Oh, I’m sorry, have we met? I’m Emma Swan, bail bondsperson, hacker extraordinaire.” She holds out her hand and then leans forward and whispers, “I can also read your mind.”

Regina scoffs and shoves playfully at Emma who pulls her closer. “Oh hush,” Regina says as she places a hand on Emma’s check before connecting their lips again. The kiss was soft, slow, and gentle. They held it, lips firm against each other for a few moments before their lips moved together in tandem. Regina held her breath, not wanting to let Emma go. Her hand moved to the back of her head, tangling in her blonde locks - Regina’s current favorite part of her. She’s found that pulling gently at the hairs along the nape of her neck causes the blonde to perk up, going taut in her arms before relaxing once again against Regina’s body, holding her closer, tighter than before. Regina smiles into the kiss as they move closer together, adding pressure and deepening their kiss.

The door to the roof flies open. Thankfully, Regina and Emma were out of sight from the door and have time to pull a part and check their surroundings. Emma immediately reaches for her boot where Regina’s assumes there’s a hidden knife (or two).

“I have nine total,” Emma responds to her thoughts.

“I think I’ll spend our second date teaching you to stay out of my head,” Regina grounds out through gritted teeth. She turns her attention toward the open door and groans. Off Emma’s confused look she explains, “It’s Rogers. He’s the washout surgeon they had to keep on because of _daddy’s money_.” She rolls her eyes, “He lost his hand in a shark attack a few years ago, so the hospital moved him to an education role. I have no idea what he’s doing up here.” No one comes up to the roof.

He stands in the middle of the roof, fiddling with his prosthetic hand before slowly turning around toward them. Instead of being caught watching him, Regina quickly pushes herself against Emma, blocking her in and kissing her. Emma is startled but quickly grabs Regina’s waist.

“Mills?” Rogers calls.

Regina pulls back and pretends to look stunned, “Rogers? What the hell are you doing up here?”

“Obviously not what you came up here to do,” he says with a creepy grin. “Although I don’t mind a little girl on girl action. Please, don’t let me interrupt.”

Regina has to repress a shudder, “That’s alright, my break is up anyway.” She grabs Emma’s hand and begins walking toward the door.

They don’t quite make it to the door before they hear, “Ho-” but the word dies on the woman’s lips as she climbs to the top of the roof and realizes Rogers is not alone. “Hi,” she says brightly. A little _too_ brightly.

Ugh. Regina _hates_ perky people.

Emma laughs at Regina’s thoughts but her face turns serious when she sees the glare on Regina’s face. “Hi,” she says in return as Regina pulls her down the steps and into the elevator. “Wow,” Emma says with a chuckle, “that was something,” she adds, running a hand through her hair. When Regina says nothing she sighs, “He bothers you,” she claims.

Regina nods, “More than most.”

“Well, that was quick thinking on the kiss, he had no idea we were watching him be weird with his plastic hand. What the hell was that about anyway?”

Regina shrugs, “Honestly, I have no idea. But hopefully I can avoid him for the rest of the day. Who knows, maybe he’ll surprise me and keep his mouth shut, but I’m assuming everyone in the hospital will know I was fooling around with some blonde by the end of the hour.”

Emma laughs, “Well, you _were_ fooling around on the roof. So, they wouldn’t be wrong.”

“I’m not big on people knowing my personal life,” Regina explains.

Emma nods, “I get that. On the plus side, you were fooling around with a super sexy blonde, so that’s definitely a bonus. For you of course,” she adds with a cheeky grin.

Regina rolls her eyes. She steps into Emma’s space and whispers, “Super sexy? Seems a bit arrogant, dear.”

It’s Emma’s turn to scoff, “Definitely accurate. You could hardly keep your hands to yourself.”

“I didn’t know I had to keep my hands away from you,” she challenges, exhaling as her breath mingles with the blonde’s.

“Oh, you definitely don’t,” Emma says with a grin. “Trust me.”

Regina shrugs and steps away from Emma just as the doors open to the entrance.

“Tease,” Emma whispers as they step off the elevator.

A giant grin takes over Regina’s face, “You like it,” she whispers as they stop in front of the entrance doors.

“Absolutely,” Emma confirms. There’s a pause, “I’ll let you get back to work. You’ve probably got to go save somebody or something.” Regina scoffs and Emma’s smile grows. “I’ll text you later,” she says with a smile as she heads for the door.

Regina is left gaping after the blonde before another timer goes off on her watch. Just enough time to make it back without causing too many questions.

She heads back to the break room to grab another water and finds Kathryn who jumps off the couch and squeals, “Well?!”

“What?” Regina asks, checking her watch again, “I’m not late. What happened?”

“NO!” Kathryn practically shouts, “How was your date?:

“Oh,” Regina says, trying to play it cool, “it was nice.”

Kathryn scoffs, “Nice? Oh Gi,” she says with condolence. “If it was just nice, you’re doing it wrong. Especially after what happened last night.” Regina rolls her eyes but can’t keep the smirk off her face. “You little tramp!” Kathryn accuses. She pauses and looks at Regina’s face, “Damn, I’ve gotta get some of that makeup.”

Regina laughs and shakes her head, “You’re overreacting.” Before they can continue their banter, Regina’s pager goes off. She sighs and looks at the number. “Talk later?” she asks, looking at Kathryn and moving to the door.

“You better believe it!” Kathryn calls at her retreating friend.

The rest of Regina’s day flies by. She catches up with Kathryn who informs her Rogers had regaled her with his tale of Regina on the roof. “Embellished I’m sure,” Regina grumbles.

Henry shows up after school and waits in the break room with Kathryn until his mom comes into the room about 5 minutes later, “Mom?” he calls.

“Yes, dear?” she says with a tired smile.

“Why was Dr. Rogers talking about your girlfriend when I came in here?”

Regina whips her head around to stare at her son, “Excuse me?” Her anger flares, _I’ll kill him._

“Let’s not get hasty,” Kathryn tries to placate, she didn’t need to read Regina’s thoughts to notice the murder in her eyes. “Henry,” she says turning to her godson, “you know Dr. Rogers tells stories just to hear himself talk.”

“Yeah,” Henry draws out, unconvinced, “but there were flowers on the table this morning, and you guys were weird last night.”

Kathryn scoffs, “We’re always weird, Henry.”

His eyebrows draw together in the same way Regina’s do when she’s trying to figure something out.

“Whatever,” Henry changes the subject, knowing he won’t get a different answer from either of them. He sets his backpack on the couch and says, “what’s the plan?” Regina gives him an odd look so he continues, “For tonight? You know, dinner?”

“Right,” Regina says, trying to follow the new subject, “what would you like?”

“Pasta?” he asks sweetly.

Regina smiles, “You’ve got it,” she promises.

“Come on, Henry, let’s get out of here before your mom kicks us out,” Kathryn says, nudging the boy toward his backpack.

“Homework,” Regina reminds with a warning.

“Done already,” Henry proudly says. When Regina gives him a dubious look he sighs and rolls his eyes, “I finished it all at the library with Belle. Promise!” he adds.

“Good work, Henry,” Kathryn praises, “now come along, let’s leave your mom to finish working and we’ll meet her at home.”

“Bye Mom,” Henry calls as he grabs his backpack and moves toward the door.

“No ice cream before dinner,” she calls, knowing it falls on deaf ears.

“Quick,” Kathryn whispers like a conspiracy to Henry, “if we leave right away we can pretend we didn’t hear her.”

They take off running, Regina shakes her head fondly. _Time to finish the shift._

Thankfully, the rest of her shift is fairly quiet and she leaves the hospital almost on time. She heads home to find Kathryn has started the pasta and Henry has fled to his room. “You’re not going to want to go in there,” Kathryn calls from the kitchen as Regina moves toward Henry’s room.

“Again?” Regina asks in disbelief, “He almost _died_ last night and he went out again?!”

“I tried to talk him out of it, but you know him,” she pauses to give Regina a look, “he’s more stubborn than you.” Regina sighs and runs a hand down her face. “Don’t worry,” Kathryn adds, causing Regina to look up, “I called Emma, well, Dark Swan, err, we’re going to have to separate them to keep her safe.” She’s talking out loud but Regina nods anyway, it will be safer not to talk about Emma and Dark Swan in the same context, it could be dangerous for her identity. It needs to be kept a secret, at all costs. “Anyways,” Kathryn says, shaking her head and turning her attention back to the noodles on the stove, “Crimson Vixen is going to watch over him again. Even said she’d have him back in time for his precious pasta,” she adds with a smirk.

“Thank you,” Regina whispers. She’s not happy about it, but at least someone has eyes on Henry. They’re going to have to talk about this.

“You have to tell him, Gi,” Kathryn says.

“Get out of my head,” Regina sighs, the words have no bite tonight.

“I don’t have to read your thoughts to know that you have to tell Henry this is too dangerous for him to take on. But he’s going to ask why. He’ll want to know why you’re an expert at this and you have to tell him.”

“Tell him what, Kathryn?” she snaps. “That his mother was The Evil Queen and that she used to do terrible things and ruin lives, even _kill people_? He already hates me, this would just drive him further away.”

“You’re wrong,” Kathryn says matter-of-factly. She holds up a hand to stop Regina from lashing out. “Henry doesn’t hate you, he was upset you lied to him. I know you didn’t think of it as lying, but you kept something important from him. He didn’t know he was adopted and it hit him like a ton of bricks,” she explains. “He doesn’t hate you for adopting him. He _loves_ you. You’re his mom. But he was scared and he lashed out - further proof that nurture won out with him,” she adds with a smirk. “Either way, in order to avoid that from happening again, you need to tell him the truth, before he finds out on his own.”

Regina sighs and flops into a chair at the island, face buried in her hands. “I know,” she finally whispers, “I just don’t know how.”

Kathryn steps over to her for a moment, putting a hand between her friend’s shoulder blades and rubbing gently, “You’ll figure it out, you always do.”

 

\---  _Red's POV_ \---

 

Red checks her phone and sees a message from Kathryn, “Alright kid, how about we call it a night?”

Henry gives her an odd look, “Already?”

“Uh, yeah, don’t you have school in the morning?”

He rolls his eyes, “That stopped being a valid excuse a long time ago.”

“Well, I’ve got a dinner...thing...yeah, I’ve got a dinner thing, so I can’t hang around late tonight,” Red lies.

“You’re a terrible liar,” Henry claims, but turns and starts heading for home. There’s silence. About halfway there he asks, “How far are you walking with me?”

Red shrugs, “Wherever you want me to, kiddo.”

He nods. It’s another four blocks to his apartment, but he takes a right down an alley anyway. Red tries to hide her smirk in the darkness. She’s proud of him, at least he’s trying to keep his identity a secret (even if it is in vain).

She eventually leaves, sending him a wave and reminding him she’ll see him again tomorrow.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

Regina wakes up in the middle of the night to her phone signaling she has a new text message. She grabs for it and sees an unknown number _hey your majesty_

She grumbles but texts back **don’t you ever sleep?**

_Hahaha, not really. I spend my nights plotting my world domination - duh!_

Regina rolls her eyes **you need a new hobby**

_Well I thought about that...but it turns out she sleeps at night_

Regina scoffs as her cheeks turn red, good thing she’s alone or someone would notice.

**How unfortunate for you**

_:/ I know, terrible luck, but I’ll suffer through it. So whatcha doin?_

**I was sleeping, until someone woke me up**

_Wow, I felt that pointed look all the way over here. I didn’t realize you woke up at the tiniest of sounds, unless of course your phone is insanely loud_

**Very light sleeper, have been ever since Henry came into my life**

_Geez, ultimate mom mode_

Regina smiles **I suppose you’re waiting for me to ask you on that date?**

_Was it obvious?_

Regina laughs **Tomorrow night? I was thinking of introducing you to Henry** . There’s silence. After a minute she adds **Only if you want, I mean, I know you he knows you as Dark Swan, but I’d like him to meet Emma. Unless of course that’s moving too quickly or you don’t think what we’re doing could develop to meet Henry, in which case, I think we need to reevaluate**

_Whoa. One thing at a time Regina. 1- I’d love to meet Henry. 2- Tomorrow night sounds great, let me know when and I’ll pick you up. 3- I definitely want our relationship to move forward, I think meeting Henry - officially - is a great first step_

A sigh of relief escapes Regina **The second step will have to be teaching you how to stay in your own head**

_You wound me, Regina_

She rolls her eyes, **I think I’m going to fall asleep again, talk tomorrow?**

_Goodnight Regina, sweet dreams :)_

Regina falls asleep with a smile on her face.

She’s up early again. But she slept surprisingly well, after her text conversation with Emma. She’s smiling as she makes breakfast. “You’re cheery,” Kathryn declares as she walks into the apartment with coffee from the shop down the street.

“Am I?” Regina asks, not looking up from her work.

“Emma?” Kathryn questions as if she already knows the answer.

“We have a date tonight.”

Kathryn squeals and jumps up and down, “Yay, Gi!”

Regina’s eyes grow wide, “Keep your voice down, Kathryn!” she hushes.

“What?” she pauses and stands up straight and her shoulders drop in disappointment, “You haven’t told Henry yet.”

Regina shakes her head and sighs, “I was going to over breakfast.”

Kathryn smiles, “Okay, awesome!”

Henry makes his way out of his room, “Morning, Aunt Kat,” he grumbles, never a morning person. They were lucky he was speaking before he had his breakfast.

“Morning, Hen,” she says with a smile. She looks at her watch, “Oh shoot, I’m late for a work thing. Gotta go! See you both later,” and just like that she’s out the door again.

“Weird,” Henry says as he plops down in his chair.

Regina sits down next to him and says, “Henry, I have something to tell you.”

He gives her a strange look but takes a bite out of his pancakes, “What kind of thing? Is it good or bad?”

“Good,” Regina answers right away, “Well, I think it’s a good thing.”

Henry nods, “Okay, what’s up?”

He’s pretty much inhaled his first pancake so Regina thinks she can start talking now, “Remember those flowers from yesterday?” When Henry points to the flowers still on the counter and Regina chuckles nervously, “Well, they were from someone-”

“Flowers usually are. They don’t usually just appear out of thin air,” he sasses.

Regina rolls her eyes, “Very funny,” she says with a shake of her head, “Those flowers were from someone special.”

“I thought you said they were from a friend?” Henry asks, eyebrows drawn together in confusion.

“They are. Well, she is a friend. But she’s also someone I’ve started seeing.”

“Seeing…” he draws out as if her sentence isn’t complete. “Seeing where?”

Regina smiles and looks down, suddenly shy. She takes a deep breath and looks back up at her son, “Seeing as in dating.”

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

“Dating?” Henry asks confused, his mom doesn’t date. “Since when?”

“It’s very new,” she answers honestly. “But I wanted you to know and if you’d like, you can meet her tonight.”

Henry’s still trying to process all of this. He looks down at his plate, he could use another pancake.

“You don’t have to meet her if you don’t want to,” she offers. Henry hears the nerves play in her voice and looks up to see her wringing her hands together on her lap.

“Can I have another pancake?” he asks.

He watches her pause for a moment, “Sure,” she says, getting up and getting him another pancake before cleaning up the counter.

He eats his pancake and watches his mom. She’s not a nervous person. At least, not before he found out that he was adopted. His mom doesn’t bat an eye at anything gory, or anything the parents say at those parent-teacher meetings. She goes to all those group meetings and picks up the slack where the other parents fail. And she does it by herself. But then he started yelling at her and telling her she wasn’t his real mom. He locked her out. It’s his fault she’s like this. And now she’s looking for her happiness somewhere else. He pushed her away and she’s leaving him.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

Regina looks up from her cleaning when she hears it. A sob. She looks up at Henry to see tears running down her face, “Henry?” He pushes away from the table and runs into his room, slamming the door. She takes off after him but pauses at the door. He’s been adamant about her respecting his privacy. She stands there for a moment before knocking softly, “Henry?” she asks, just as quietly. She can hear his sobs, muffled by a pillow most likely. Her heart breaks, “Henry, what’s wrong?” Nothing. Forget about breaking, her heart has shattered, all over again. She doesn’t know what caused this outburst. Henry’s always been a sensitive kid, but this is over- oh god. “Henry? Is this about my date? Oh sweetie, I didn’t know you would be so upset. I don’t have to go, I’ll cancel. I know I haven’t been around a lot, but I’ll cancel, and I’ll be home early tonight.” She pauses, “Unless you’d rather have Kathryn pick you up again.” Her heart breaks, her son doesn’t even want her around anymore.

His door opens and Henry catapults himself at her. She doesn’t have time to brace herself for his ten-year-old body to attack her, “Don’t leave me!” and she reaches out for anything to catch herself. Thankfully her staggering feet were enough - this time. She wraps her arms around her sobbing son’s shoulders and hushes him, whispering that everything is going to be okay.

When his sobs turn to whimpers, she guides him to the couch and tucks him under her arm, his grip still tight around her waist. “Henry?” she asks quietly. Silence. She sighs, “Henry, why do you think I’m leaving you?”

He snivels, “Because I told you I hate you, so you’re leaving me for your new friend,” he reasons.

“Oh, Henry,” Regina says as her heart twists in her chest. She pulls him closer, “I’m not leaving you. I’m your mom. You’re stuck with me forever,” she promises with an extra squeeze.

“But-” he hiccups again. “But you don’t love me anymore.”

Regina pulls back to look him in the eye, “Where on _earth_ did you get that idea Henry?” He shrugs, avoiding her eyes. She lifts his chin up with her finger, “Henry,” she asks again.

He looks at her eyes and sees nothing but concern. He sees nothing but his mom. The tears come again.

Regina sighs and pulls him close to her again. With one hand across his shoulders and one holding his head under her chin she slower rocks side to side. “Oh Henry, my sweet boy, that couldn’t be further from the truth. I love you more than anything, more than words can explain, and more than any distance between us,” she promises.

His sobs turn to hiccups. Again. He rests his head against her shoulder and asks, “More than the sun loves the moon?”

She smiles, “Higher than the sky and more than all the water in the ocean.” They used to play this game when he was a toddler and would do anything to get out of going to bed, including trying to quantify her love.

“That’s a lot,” he says with a wet chuckle.

“More than you’ll ever know,” she responds and kisses his forehead.

They sit quietly, Henry trying to regulate his breathing. After the hiccups have mostly subsided he asks, “What’s her name?”

Regina tenses but answers his question. _Honesty_ she reminds herself, “Emma.”

“Is she nice?”

Regina smiles, “She’s very nice.”

They’re quiet again. Finally, he says, “When will I meet her?”

Regina pulls back to look at him, “You don’t have to meet her if you don’t want, Henry. I didn’t realize how strongly you would feel about this, but you are and always will be my priority.”

He shakes his head but lays it back on her shoulder, he can’t look at her when he whispers, “I just don’t want you to leave me,” voice full of tears again.

“Henry, I’m not going anywhere.” She pulls out her phone.

“What are you doing?” he asks as he watches her scroll through her contacts list.

“I’m going to cancel. I’m sorry I brought this up, I don’t think either of us are ready.”

“What? No!” he shouts, grabbing her phone. “That’s not,” he pauses and gives a thoughtful look, “that’s not what I want.”

Regina gives him a confused look, “It’s not?”

He shakes his head, “No, at least, I don’t think so.” He studies her and Regina feels his eyes as if they’re seeing right through her. “Does she make you happy?”

What an incredibly mature question from her 10-year-old. She offers a small half-smile, “Yes, so far, she has made me very happy.”

He hands her back her phone, “Then I want to meet her.” He stands up and grabs his backpack, “And I have to get to school.”

Regina looks at her watch, _shit_ , “You’re right. But we’ll continue this conversation later, and you can count on that,” she promises with raised eyebrows.

“Okay, Mom,” he says and gives her another hug before they rush out the door to make it to school on time.

The rest of Regina’s day flies by and suddenly she’s waiting anxiously, pacing between the kitchen and her room, checking her reflection again and again.

“Mom,” Henry calls exasperatedly, “You look fine.” He and his godmother sit on the couch, sharing looks and rolling their eyes when she continues to pace and recheck her makeup.

“She’s not coming,” Regina says, certain of her prediction.

“What are you talking about?” Kathryn says with a sigh. “It’s only,” she pauses to look at the clock, “It’s only 6:55, you told her 7 o’clock, she’ll be here.”

Another four minutes go by and now Kathryn’s getting nervous because Regina is wound up tight with nerves.

A knock.

Everyone collectively sighs as Regina straightens her shoulders and walks toward the door. She opens it and smiles when she sees a nervous-looking Emma. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Emma breathes with a smile.

“Come on in,” she offers, stepping aside.

She walks in and they watch as Kathryn stands up. “Hi Emma,” she says as she moves forward to shake her hand and offers her a wink.

“Hi,” Emma responds and looks over to see the back of a brunette head.

Regina’s heart seizes, maybe this wasn’t a great idea. Then Henry stands up, looking just as nervous as Emma. “Hey,” he says with an awkward wave.

“Hi,” Emma answers.

“Is that all you can say?” he asks with raised eyebrows.

Emma offers a chuckle, “No,” she snarks back. With a smirk she looks up to Regina, “ _exactly_ like you.”

Regina scoffs but Kathryn laughs aloud, “Ha. Ha. Very funny,” Regina says with an eye roll.

Emma steps forward and holds out her hand, “Emma Swan.”

Henry smiles and shakes her head, “Henry Mills.”

“Good to meet you, Henry,” she says with a nod. He responds in kind and turns to Regina.

“Are you ready?” she asks after a moment of silence. Emma nods and Regina smiles. She turns her attention and suddenly looks very seriously at Henry. She takes a few steps and guides him with her, “Are you going to be alright?” she whispers.

Henry nods, looks over to Emma (who is pretending not to watch them) and looks back to his mom. He wraps around her and gives her a tight hug. “Love you,” he mumbles into her dress.

She looks stunned as she wraps her arms around Henry, eyes misting with tears. “I love you too dear.” She steps back and smiles, “I’ll see you later. I better see you in bed, asleep, by the time I get home, Mister,” she adds with raised eyebrows. He gives a mock salute and she turns her attention to her best friend, “Try to behave.”

Kathryn looks mockingly outraged, “I detest your assumption that we cannot behave together.”

Regina rolls her eyes, “Years of experience. Now, be good for Kathryn. Kathryn, make sure he’s in bed at a decent hour,” she tells them both as she and Emma move to the door.

They walk to their destination and have a wonderful dinner. Regina tells Emma, in hushed tones, how to control her ability to jump into Regina’s mind whenever she pleases. Thankfully, Emma is a quick learner and picks up on the basics by the end of their meal. They meander back to the apartment at a slow pace, happy to just walk with each other, hands swinging and held together by their sides. They make it to Regina’s apartment and Emma smiles, “I had a great time tonight.”

“Me too,” Regina agrees, moving closer to Emma. They share a kiss. It’s soft, as they usually start out to be. Regina’s plump velvety lips meeting with Emma’s thinner, warm ones, bonding as they start this dance. Emma’s lips part and her tongue gently prods, asking to enter, a wish Regina grants gleefully. A hand at her hip and one at her neck guide her closer to Emma, she grabs ahold of the first things she can, Emma’s elbows. It’s not exactly the most graceful of kisses, but it’s powerful and Regina soon finds herself losing any train of thought she might have had. Their kiss grows deeper than the galaxies of the universe and without any thought at all, Regina reveals her thoughts to Emma, no prodding or inappropriate mind jumping required. Emma seizes up, unable to respond to anything as Regina’s thoughts are shown to her. She gasps and feels Regina peppering her face with kisses.

She grabs ahold of Regina’s hips and buries her head beneath brunette locks as she tries to catch her breath. Regina’s continues her kisses on any exposed part her lips can reach. Emma lifts her head up and it looks like her face might split in two with the giant smile she gives Regina. “That was amazing,” she whispers breathlessly.

“I told you it would be better if you didn’t have to break it,” Regina murmurs with a smug smirk.

Emma rests her head against Regina’s but before she can say some words she never thought she’d ever say to someone, her phone rings. She groans.

“And I thought I hated it when _Kathryn’s_ phone rings like that,” Regina murmurs, still a little drunk from sharing her thoughts so intimately. Emma pulls back to give her a strange look, to which Regina tries to distract herself with finding her apartment key, “You should get that,” Regina says softly.

Emma answers it and groans when Red tells her she needs to get back ASAP. “I have to go,” she says apologetically. “See you soon?”

Regina smiles at how hopeful the blonde sounds. She leans forward and gives her a sweet, innocent kiss. “Absolutely.”

“I’ll call you later,” Emma promises, stealing another kiss before turning to go to the elevator.

“Goodbye Emma,” Regina whispers, too quietly for the blonde to hear. They share a final wave before the elevator doors close and Regina moves into her apartment.

She sits for a while with Kathryn, talking about her date before she excuses herself to sleep. She has to work in the morning.

\--- 

The morning comes far too soon. Hours too soon in fact. Regina arises to the sound of her cell phone blaring. It’s Emma. “This couldn’t wait ‘til morning?” she grumbles, unhappy at having to get up at this time of the night.

“Regina.” It’s not Emma, but the voice is out of breath. She immediately sits straight up in bed and waits for Crimson Vixen to continue. “They’ve got her.”

Regina doesn’t ask for details right away, she’s up and out of bed before she can even process what’s happening. “What is going on?” she finally asks as she looks around the room, waiting for answers.

“It was a trap. A phony trick to distract us. She got a lead about a guy who’s been skimming money on one of her businesses. She went to find him and was ambushed. They took her, Regina,” she almost sounds...frightened.

Villains don’t get frightened. “Who?” she asks.

“Scarlet Lynx,” she spits the name, “and that damned pirate Captain.”

Regina’s eyes narrow, she’s never met this pirate captain, but she’s had run ins with Scarlet Lynx before, only she was nothing but a newby, hardly a super villain at the time. “That bitch,” she growls. “What do we know?”

“Nothing,” the villain says with disdain. “We know nothing.”

“I’ll make some phone calls. Are you tracking them?” she asks, all business.

“Yes,” Crimson says, “We have Crypto Beauty on it, but so far she’s found nothing.”

“I’ll contact Cascade and see if she can find anything. If not, maybe they can work together and see if there’s any other way of finding her.” She pauses as she steps out of her door to see everything in the apartment is dark. Of course, the one time she _needs_ Kathryn awake is the one time she is actually getting some rest. She sighs and whispers, “I’ll call you back in five minutes.”

“I hope I have something by then,” Crimson whispers.

“Me too,” Regina sighs and ends the call. She moves into Kathryn’s room and gently shakes the blonde, “Kathryn. Kathryn, I need you. Wake up.” The blonde hardly stirs. “Kathryn,” Regina calls a bit louder. “Cascade!” she finally says. She bolts upright in bed, hands in front of her as if readying herself for a fight. _She’ll need to be ready_ ,  Regina thinks to herself.

“What’s wrong?” Kathryn says, immediately recognizing the grief-stricken look on her friend’s face.

“They took Emma. They set a trap and took her. We need to get her back.”

“Who took her?” Kathryn asks.

“Scarlet Lynx and someone named,” she pauses to look at the text Crimson just sent her, “Captain Hook?”

Kathryn makes a noise of disgust in her throat, “Two low level jerks, keen on making a name for themselves.”

“We need you to find them,” Regina says as she stands, “I’m going to end them.”

Kathryn is upright and following her friend back to her bedroom, grabbing her laptop along the way, “Regina, no need for death threats. First, let’s find Swan. Then, we can worry about ending the lives of the guilty.”

Regina nods but doesn’t hear a word her friend is saying. She steps into her closet and goes to the locked armoire in the back. She removes a hidden key from beneath the giant wardrobe and opens it. She pulls out an outfit and sighs. With a proud nod, she hangs it on a hook and begins dressing. Kathryn types furiously on her computer and only takes a break when she helps Regina tighten her corset. “Is this really necessary?” she asks as she pulls it tighter.

“Until we know where she is, I’m going to look the part. There’s nothing else I can do, so I will become The Evil Queen once more, and these peasants will beg for forgiveness before I crush them.”

“Ok, Gi, maybe tone it down just a bit, I’m here to help you.”

Regina sighs, “Sorry, Kathryn, it’s just-”

“I know, Gi, I know,” she rubs a hand down one of her friend’s arms, “We’ll find her and get her back.”

Regina nods and turns her attention to her outfit. It’s her signature black pants, tighter than should be humanly possible, leather heeled boots, and a dark overcoat that drags just above her heels. In the darkness, it looks like a black overcoat, matching her pants and corset, but in the light, it’s covered in black velvet flowers and plants, vines growing in all directions. And when the light hits in, you realize it’s not a black overcoat, but a deep plum color. When she’s almost satisfied with the outfit and the way it falls, she turns her attention to her face. She hasn’t worn this outfit since Henry came into her life, since she and Mal were run out by The Huntress. She’s not the same as she was back then, but to save Emma, she will do whatever it takes.

But right now? She may be wearing an Evil Queen outfit, but her face says “tired single mom scared for the woman she cares about” not “I will destroy your happiness if it’s the last thing I do” and that needs to change. She begins applying dark makeup and taming her curls. When she’s semi-satisfied, she looks in the mirror and sees eyes encased in black eyeliner with plum accents, making her eyes look nearly purple with power briming around the iris. There’s dark lipstick staining her lips and a menacing glare drawing her eyebrows in and her lips to pucker. She pulls her curls to the side, pinning them to stay in place, and places a hat atop her head. Now the look as been completed.

She walks out of the closet and Kathryn does a double take, “Damn, Regina, you stepped into that role quickly.” Regina’s lips tighten, “I know you don’t want to be her, Gi,” she adds softly, “But this might give them pause before they try anything stupid.”

“They’ve already done something stupid,” Regina says with venom lacing her words.

Kathryn nods and knows the only thing that can help her friend is getting her information on Emma. “I think I’ve found their location. They seem to have taken her to the Dragon’s lair.”

“The Dragon?” Regina asks, unsure she’s heard correctly.

“That’s what all my intel is saying. I’d say it’s a safe bet that she’s there.”

“But why there?” she wonders aloud.

Kathryn shrugs, “To draw someone out?” she offers.

Regina growls, “They can’t know any of us are still alive.” She’s confused, “You made sure of that.”

“I know,” Kathryn says with a nod, “Either way, I think that’s where you should head first.” Regina nods, “I’ve called in some favors. You’ll need all the backup you can get.”

A scoff is her response, “I’m The Evil Queen, dear, or have you forgotten?”

“Not forgotten, but these people took one of the current most powerful villains as if it was child’s play.”

“And they will live long enough to regret that decision.” Regina stands to move toward the door, “I’m going to make them pay.” She turns at her bedroom door, “The Queen is back,” she promises.

Kathryn laughs but immediately stops when a tiny voice says, “Mom?”

Regina freezes and slowly turns to see her son rubbing sleep from his eyes, “Henry,” she breathes in shock. “You’re- you’re dreaming dear. Go back to bed, we’ll talk in the morning.”

“I’m not sleeping,” he pouts. “And you’re dressed weird. And your face looks weird,” he surmises. “Why do you look so angry? Why are your dressed like...like…” he pauses, eyes blow wide, “No,” he whispers, taking a step back.

“Henry,” she whispers, taking a step toward him but freezes when he stumbles back farther. “It’s not what it seems Henry,” she promises.

“But...but you can’t be. The Evil Queen is dead.” Regina remembers the first time Henry asked her if she remembered The Evil Queen. He had heard about her from the news one night, when the anchor was talking about her reign of terror over their city before she disappeared and was assumed dead. It broke her heart to lie to him and say she ‘vaguely’ remembered her. He spent the next few weeks reading everything he could about the villain. He was always looking for new information on topics he found interesting, and The Evil Queen was as interesting as it got. No one knew anything about her, except that her wickedness knew no bounds.

“Henry, I promise you. It’s not like that. I have not been her since before you were born, but I have to be, one last time. To save someone. Someone very important.”

Henry doesn’t believe her, she can tell by the look in his eyes and the anger she feels radiating off of him. “You _lied_ to me,” he says, “again,” he adds in disbelief.

“No, Henry, no,” she begs, “Please believe me, I use my power for good, I save people. I’m a _doctor_ , I’m your mom.”

“Then why start again?” he whispers, betrayal seeping into his voice.

She sighs, “I have to save someone,” she whispers, her head bent in shame.

“Who could be so important?” he asks.

She almost says Emma. Almost. But she can’t bring herself to share that secret. Not even to her son. “Dark Swan,” she answers.

Henry’s head whips up in shock, “What happened?”

“Scarlet Lynx and some ghastly pirate have taken her hostage, and I was called to come and help.”

“Why you?” he asks in confusion.

Regina knows he’s not following what she’s saying but she replies, “I’m a healer, Henry. I’ve been saving people as a secret healer for years now. I go when I am needed.”

“That’s why Aunt Kat is always here,” he understands.

She nods, “I always made sure you were safe.”

Suddenly, Kathryn walks out, in her own super outfit. Blue and green, with a bit of gray; like a waterfall, flowing across the rocks. She may be known as a wealth of information, a computer genius, but her smaller affinity for water could come in handy, as could her connection with Regina. “Cascade?” Henry whispers in awe.

“Hey Henry, how are you processing?” she asks.

He can’t answer because Regina asks, “What are you doing? You have to stay with Henry?”

Kathryn scoffs, “You really think he’s going to allow that?”

Regina turns from her friend to her son who runs into his room and comes out holding a pen. He writes on a pad of paper **_The Author is dressed for a fight_ ** and the air around him glows. Regina’s heart seizes in fear until the light fads and standing in front of her was her son, dressed in black with a sash of purple and silver, when his mom stares at him he says, “So, I guess I have something to tell you.”

Kathryn laughs as her friend stares in shock, “Henry, we knew you were The Author, we knew about the sneaking out to save the world and your run-ins with Dark Swan and Crimson Vixen. They’re the only reason you were allowed to continue. That and I have eyes everywhere making sure you’re safe.”

He looks confused, “You knew?” Both women nod, “Geez, can I keep no secrets?!” he groans.

Regina laughs, “We have a lot to talk about, but right now we have to go. We have a Super to save.”

“The Supers saving the villain,” Henry muses, “sounds like a great book title,” he adds with a laugh.

The three run out of the apartment and up to the roof. They sneak across rooftops and down alleys until they reach the alley leading to The Dragon’s Lair. Regina pauses, this is no place to take a child. “Good luck with that, Gi,” Kathryn muses.

“Does no one respect personal boundaries?” she grounds out.

Kathryn laughs and shakes her head, “We’re going to need this connection open tonight, Regina. Focus on getting her out, then we can talk about space.” She blows a kiss and a wink as her friend grumbles.

She turns her attention from her friend to her son, “Listen and listen good. Some things will be said in there, so _please_ always remember I am your mother and I love you more than anything in the world. You made me a better person Henry. _You did that_. What they say in there,” she pauses and sighs, “What I used to do, who I used to be; that’s not who I am anymore. But I won’t lie to you, Henry, it might get ugly and I may have to do some things I swore I would never do again.”

Henry nods, taking this information surprisingly well, “We need to save her, Mom. That’s the _right_ thing to do. And sometimes heroes have to do bad things to do the right thing. I’ve learned that in these last months becoming The Author. It’s a lot more complicated than I thought.”

Regina smiles and kisses his forehead, “My sweet prince, you are wise beyond your years. Now, we can talk more afterwards, now it’s time to save the day.”

Henry laughs, “Let’s go save Dark Swan. WAIT!” he shouts before they can move. Regina gives him an odd look and he says, “Dark Swan?” slowly. And slowly says, “Emma Swan?” he turns to his mother, “Are you _kidding_ me? You’re dating Dark Swan?”

Regina’s eyes are wide and she swallows, “Well, technically we’ve just been dating for two days, but yes, Emma is Dark Swan.”

“Oh my god. How did I miss that? I’m supposed to be The Author. I’m supposed to know where the story goes and I completely missed this. God,” he groans and throws his head back.

“Damn, kid figured it out on his own,” a voice says from above, causing Henry to jump but Regina and Kathryn remain calm, knowing who is above them. Crimson Vixen drops from her perch and stands next to Henry, ruffling his hair with a smile, “I’m so glad we don’t have to wait for Swan to grow a pair and tell you herself.”

Regina shakes her head, “Ready?” she asks.

Crimson nods, “Everyone is in position and waits for your signal.”

“Good,” she turns to Henry. “I’m going in first. You stay with Crimson and Cascade, they’ll tell you our plan and you will follow orders. Exactly as you are told, am I understood?” she asks, going full-on drill sergeant mom.

Henry nods, “Yeah, but-”

“No buts, Henry. Or I’ll have you locked up in a room around here where you won’t be able to get into trouble. Can you follow directions or do you need to be moved?” There’s no menace in her words but she’s trembling in fear, her poor baby was too young for a fight like this.

“Fine, Mom,” he grumbles in submission.

She smiles. “And remember, only super names from here on, got it? Our identities are sacred and must be protected at all costs.”

He nods, “Got it.”

“Good, I love you,” she whispers, kissing his forehead. She nods to the women beside him before squaring her shoulders and walking to the doors.

She flings them out with a flick of her wrist, “Whoa,” Henry whispers in awe and receives chuckles in response.

“Come on, Henry,” Cascade whispers, “We’ve got to get into position.”

Regina looks around her as Kathryn’s thoughts fade away from her and she sighs at the distance but welcomes the feeling of Emma in her mind. A sigh of relief escapes her as she moves closer to Emma’s energy, keeping her eyes peeled for danger. This place is exactly as she remembers, nothing has changed. _That’s odd. So, Mal hasn’t been here_ she thinks as she remembers how often the Dragon had redecorated. She feels Emma’s energy, faint, as if she’s unconscious or very injured; her heart stops but she continues moving toward the fragile pulse she feels. She comes to the great room, the doors are already open and she sees Emma, hanging by her wrists, not moving. _Emma_ she thinks as her heart freezes, her blood runs cold. _Please don’t be dead_ she thinks as she moves into the room slowly.

Apparently it’s not slow enough.

“Well, this is a surprise I was not expecting,” a voice rings out from one of the darkened corners of the room. Regina feels her energy, just in front of her and to the left.

“Sorry I’m late,” Regina drawls as she telepathically flips the lights on. “It was a little dark in here, don’t you think?” she asks with a smirk. This is why people thought she was a witch and not a super; sometimes it looked like magic instead of what it was, telepathy.

“The Evil Queen lives again. Where were you the past 10 years? Licking your wounds?” The Huntress’ voice is like ice.

“For what?” she counters. There’s silence, “Oh from you?” Regina scoffs, “Please, you were hardly a blip on my radar. You tried to use my idea and you failed,” she fakes a pout with her lips, “it’s hardly a cause for wounds.”

“You knew those statues weren’t ready,” she accuses.

Regina releases a sparkling laugh, laced with ice. “Oh please, that was hardly _my_ fault. We hadn’t perfected the execution. _You_ came in and ruined our plan. _You_ couldn’t deliver on _our_ promise. It’s not my fault you’ll always be a second class villain.”

She hears a gasp and The Huntress steps forward, “Take it back,” she growls.

“Not on your life,” Regina returns, venom lacing every letter. “Release the Swan and I will make your death quick.”

“What’s she to you?” she asks.

Regina rolls her eyes, “Please, she’s the top villain, you can’t possibly believe she made it that far on her own.” She did, of course she did, but Regina needs a cover and this is her shot.

“You’re telling me that Dark Swan has been your pet project for the last 10 years?” she sounds dubious.

“I’m telling you to let her go.”

The Huntress pretends to think on it, “No,” she says with challenging eyebrows.

Regina’s eyes narrow, “I wished it wouldn’t end like this,” she sighs before lifting her hand, lifting The Huntress in time and throwing her into the wall. She made sure her head hit in just the right way that would knock her unconscious for at least 10 minutes, plenty of time to get Emma safe. She moves forward to unchain the blonde, maybe she won’t even need her back up.

Oh a girl could dream. She waves her hands and Emma’s chains come undone, thank god her powers could do that. Emma has dropped gracelessly to the floor. She rushes to her and waves a hand over her head, healing the nasty laceration she finds and its accompanying concussion.

A knife flies by her and embeds itself into the wall in front of her. She whirls around and examines the room. She feels it, a faint beating. “You must be the pirate. Poor shot.” Then she smells it, “Or it’s the rum,” she adds with disdain.

“I could’ve hit you if I wanted,” he slurs.

She rolls her eyes but feels another presence in the room. “Lynx,” she calls out in disgust, “You were nothing but a pipsqueak when you came to me, begging for a teacher. Now look at you, nothing but a washout, following the wrong crowd,” she sneers.

“You wound me, Your Majesty,” she says, stepping into the light. “Yet here you are, back from the dead. And for what? I doubt it was for little ole’ me.”

“Of course I’m not here for you, so why are _you_ here.”

She shrugs, “I am here to finish my job. And that’s to destroy Dark Swan. I’ll ask you nicely to leave since you’re ruining my vibe.”

Regina scoffs, “I do not care about your ‘vibe’ but I _do_ care about your ideas on killing Dark Swan, because I can’t let that happen.” She catches the change in the villain's heartbeat just before she leaps. Regina catches her body but instead of throwing it into the wall like she did The Huntress, she throws her to the ground in front of her. She leans down as the Lynx struggles, unable to get up with the invisible weight pressing her down. “You’re not worthy of killing a villain of Dark Swan’s caliber,” she whispers as she crushes a hand between her leather-bound heel. Lynx screams in agony but Regina couldn’t care less. She pushes her away and turns her attention back to Emma. She heals the last of her wounds and smiles when she wakes up.

“Re-” she starts but Regina quickly silences her with a finger to her mouth.

“Swan, you better get up and get me out of here, I have to work in the morning.”

Emma laughs and Regina helps her to her feet, “You’ve got it, Your Majesty.” She mock bows and they head for the door.

But it’s never that easy. Why is it never that easy?

They’re walking to the door and the pirate’s so drunk his pulse is barely detectable. He sneaks behind them and stabs his hook into Regina’s neck. The pain is immediately noticeable as she drops to the floor.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

“What the fuck?” Emma shouts, turning her attention to the pirate.

His death will be painful, she decides as she moves in. But there’s another surprise on his side. The rest of the Huntress’ team springs into action. They were hidden far enough away that Regina would not sense them if she wasn’t watching closely, and they knew she would be distracted.

 _Thank god for Crimson_ , Emma thinks as she watches her friends jump in.

“Well well,” a voice tuts, “my two villains in one place.” Emma sees it’s Snow White, looking over as Crimson tries to apply pressure to Regina’s neck.

“Snow,” she growls. Emma knows the history between the two, the history she neglected to share with Regina. Red and Snow grew up together. Mary-Margaret had run away from her parents, wanting to live a “real” life, wanting to see the world her affluent parents kept her from. Of course, all Ruby saw was a young girl who didn’t know the first thing about living on the streets. The government captured them both, and Mary’s parents paid through the nose to get her back. She was rescued on the same day she came, so Emma didn’t have the chance to meet her, but she and Ruby shared their demons and Mary-Margaret was hers. It was _Mary’s_ fault they got caught anyway.

“No one could kill me, and now good will triumph again!” she shouts as she pulls an arrow.

“You’re supposed to be a hero!” a tiny voice shouts. It’s Henry. _Oh no_.

“Who are you?” Snow asks, distracted away from Regina and Crimson.

“You’re supposed to save people!” he screams. “Not hurt someone who is already hurt!”

Snow rolls her eyes, “Trust me, kid. These are evil villains. The only way to protect everyone is to kill them.”

Henry glares, “They were right, you were never a hero. Like a wolf in sheep's clothing, and we all bought it.” He grabs his pen to write but it is shot out of his hand by an arrow.

“ _You’re_ The Author?” Snow asks dubiously. “This is PERFECT! All of my enemies in one place.”

“You’re enemies with a 10-year-old?” Henry asks, perfected with Regina’s sass.

And then Emma feels pressure at her neck and she’s out.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

Henry doesn’t know what to do. One minute, they’re winning, beating all of the villains (well, the good villains were beating the bad villains if that makes any sense). And the next minute, they’re all captured.

Most everyone is tied up by their wrists, hanging in the air. Crimson Vixen, who was currently stuck in wolf form, tied down at each of her paws, inside a cage. Another member of Galactic Genesis, Flux, was inside what looked to be a bubble, guess the Huntress’ gang of miscreants figured out her ability to steal other supers’ abilities. And then there was Henry, simply inside a cage next to Crimson’s. He watches Emma wake up and struggle to free herself from the bonds, they’re too tight, even Henry  can see it from across the room. He looks over to see his mom, who is still unconscious and bleeding profusely, but Henry sees her chest rise and fall. He turns his attention back to the other villains. _No_ , Henry corrects himself, _they’re the_ **_only_ ** _villains here. We were just here to save Dark Swan_.

He feels his pockets and sighs in frustration. No pen. He watches Dark Swan struggle with her restraints and listens to Crimson’s vocal protests in her wolf form. “I’m so sorry,” he whispers, reaching out to pet her fur. It calms her mildly, but that’s it. They’re still all trapped. And there’s nothing he can do about it.

“Hey kid,” he hears a whisper. He looks up to see Emma looking down at him, “Now would be a good time for you to use your power and get us out of here.”

“I can’t,” he protests, “I don’t have my pen.”

“You don’t need it Henry,” she tells him.

“Of course I do! Without it, I’m just a writer.”

“It’s not the pen that’s special, Henry! It’s _you_!!” Emma promises.

Henry shakes his head but it’s worth a try. He takes a deep breath and thinks about the lock unlocking. He writes the word out in the air. It’s different than what he usually does, but his body knows what to do. He writes **_THE CHAINS UNLOCK_ ** and they do, all of the people hanging in the air, drop to the floor and are ready to attack the real villains.

 

\---  _Emma's POV_ \---

 

Emma doesn’t even have time to praise Henry, although a proud smile takes over her face, because she rushes to Regina to apply pressure once again to the hook hole in her neck. She turns when she feels someone moving closer, ready to attack, but it’s just Red so she nods and turns her attention back to Regina. Red watches over them as the fight drags on. She growls and Emma turns her attention away from Henry and Regina to see what was happening. Thankfully, it was Cascade and she had a redhead Emma didn’t recognize with her.

The redhead kneels next to Regina and begins to heal her.

Emma sees the pirate sneaking out a hidden side door and decides to follow him, after all he did start this by stabbing Regina with his hook. And Emma promised to kill him. She wouldn’t want to disappoint herself. Now just to find the perfect way to kill him.

 

\---  _Regina's POV_ \---

 

Regina wakes and slowly tries to sit up, “What happened?” she asks, still out of it.

“MOM!” Henry shouts as he tackles her back to the ground.

“Easy, Pet,” a British voices tells him.

He pauses and looks at the redhead, “Aunt Z?”

She smiles, “Miss me yet?”

“Of course!” he shouts. “Did you fix Mom?”

Zelena shrugs and stands, “I did what I could, she’ll be fine.”

Regina scoffs, “Thanks Sis,” she calls with a smirk. She looks around and sees all the fighting, so many people fighting and Regina’s not sure why. _Why were so many people here lying in wait? They couldn’t have known I would show up, right? Were they waiting for Mal? No, she’s been “dead” too; if she hasn’t come back for her lair yet, they wouldn’t expect her to now, would they? Then why?_ She is pulled from her thoughts when someone pushes against the barrier around her mind. She turns to look and connects eyes with Crimson Vixen. Her wolf mind can still communicate in a way Regina can understand. She smiles and nods, opening her mind to the wolf.

_Emma took off after Hook, Snow and Lynx followed._

Regina’s eyes blow wide. “Hen-” she pauses and shakes her head, putting some distance between them, “Author,” she corrects, _what a rookie mistake_ , she adds in her mind. “Stay with Cascade or Wicked Aberration, got it?” He nods and she smiles, placing a hand on his cheek before turning to Crimson, **lead the way** she thinks and follows the wolf out of the great room.

They make their way to the loading docks. Regina remembers this used to be a shipping yard before Mal took over and turned it into her ultimate lair. She feels the hairs stand up on the nape of her neck when she can feel three other heartbeats as well as hers and Crimson’s, and there it is again, that almost-pulse. She’s never felt anything like that before. Well, except the few times while she was at the hospital, but she just assumed it was patients dying and brushed it off. Maybe it wasn’t, maybe there are people who can slow their heart rate or hide it from her; the idea doesn’t make her feel safe at all. When they come into view, Regina gasps, Emma is surrounded. Emma’s far too tense. Something is wrong. She glances around the blonde and finds she has an arrow in the back of her thigh. Regina watches as Snow knocks an arrow and releases a breath. She knows her arrow will fly true.

Unless Regina changes its course, which she does. Instead of flying straight into Emma’s heart, it diverts and flies into Lynx’s foot. She screams and Regina smiles, it’s a small victory, but she enjoys it nonetheless. After everything Lynx has put her through tonight, she deserves that and so much more.

Hook says something to Emma, and by the way Emma’s posture changes, Regina knows it can’t be good. She reaches out and punches him right in the jaw, knocking him backwards. Regina can’t help but laugh. Her blood runs cold as she sees Snow nock another arrow. Although she doesn’t have to worry, she feels Crimson’s heartbeat change right before she leaps in the air, knocking Snow to the ground and growling in her face. Snow’s eyes widen in fear, she’s never been this close to Crimson Vixen’s teeth before.

Regina’s laughter fills the room again. She steps up and places a hand on Crimson’s neck and leans over Snow, “I agree, dear. It _would_ be a shame for her neck to rip open.” Her smirk grows into an evil smile as Snow gulps.

“You wouldn’t,” she attempts to challenge. It looks pitiful. “Not in front of your son.”

Regina rolls her eyes and leans close, closer than Crimson’s sharp teeth and says “You know _nothing_ about me. You never have and now you never will.”

‘But- but- you’ve been gone too long, you can’t kill me; you never could.”

A scoff and she stands up, “I don’t have to. You pissed off a girl who became an assassin. And if for some crazy reason (that doesn’t exist)” she adds with a grin, “Her partner-in-crime is also an assassin who will have no issue ripping you apart.” She stands up and rubs Crimson’s neck. “Go for it.”

She turns around to see Emma stalking toward Hook.

“Hey, Swan,” she shouts, getting her attention and laughing when Hook jumps, “You know you’re some kind of stupid getting yourself caught by a tiny minion not worth your salt.”

Swan whips her head around, looking offended, “Oi! Your Majesty,” she says, “Why ya gotta be that way? Lynx jumped me, alright? I went looking for a minion that tried to skim from me, _again_ , and BOOM suddenly, I’m in this hellhole.”

“That sounds like an excuse, Swan,” Regina tuts, swaggering closer. “Maybe you’re going soft,” she offers with raised eyebrows.

Emma scoffs, “Not a chance, Queenie.”

“Call me that again and it’ll be the last word you ever say,” she threatens.

This causes Emma to laugh, “Promise you’ll make it good?”

Regina rolls her eyes but shrugs, “Depends on what you’ve got for an escape plan.”

“A plan?” Emma asks with a shake of her head, “Do you know who I am?”

“What the hell is going on?” a male voice asks in confusion.

Both women look to the pirate and Emma steps into his personal space, eye to eye, “The adults are talking, so shut up or I’ll have to shut you up.”

“Ooh,” he says as he pretends to have shivers up his spine, “I love a little spirit. Tell me more.”

Emma rolls her eyes, “Ew,” she says in disgust.

“Now you know how _you_ sound,” Regina says with a laugh.

Before Emma can respond the pirate speaks again, “What’s going on here?”

“Shut up,” Regina says, she steps forward as she feels Snow’s heart rate increase as Crimson continues to play with her food. She uses her power to feel for the pirate’s pulse and looks at his face.

He looks shocked, “I know that voice,” he whispers in shocked. Regina studies his face as he steps back, “Mills?”

She freezes. _No._ “It can’t be.”

“Who?” Emma asks, looking between the two when Hook lifts his hand. “The creepy doctor?” she asks, directing her question to Regina. When she says, “Oh no way.” There’s a pause and she throws her hands as if she’s throwing a tantrum, “I hate when shit goes sideways. Why does it all have to go sideways?” She turns and shouts, “Crimson,” she gets the attention of the wolf, “everybody sleeps with the fishes. Got it?” The wolf howls and gets to work.

“Could you be any cheesier?” Regina asks with an eye roll.

“What? You prefer they all get clipped?” she asks in a terrible New Jersey accent. “How about whacked? Huh?”

“Stop talking and do something,” Regina says as she shakes her head.

Emma scoffs, “What? Now I gotta do all the heavy lifting?”

Regina sighs, “If you’d stop bickering, you’d realize the pirate is getting away.”

“Dammit,” Emma says as she watches the pirate. She grabs one of her six-point silver throwing stars and tosses it, landing right in his shoulder. He shouts as he falls on his face and she laughs, “Shuriken. They never let me down.” The women turn to see a giant wolf covered in blood and a barely alive Snow White. “Aye, Crimson,” she calls, laughing at the look the wolf gives, “You got this one? I think he might be a runner.” The wolf howls in delight and moves toward the pirate, leaving Snow to suffer a little bit longer. Emma steps forward and takes Regina’s hand, she’s still freaked, “Hey,” she says softly with a smile, “We’re safe. Nobody is making it out of here knowing anyone’s identities.”

“You can’t promise that. We’re not in the business of safety.”

“We’ll run away if it’ll make you feel better. I’ve got contacts all over. If you’ll feel safer we can go to the middle of nowhere and you can homeschool Henry. But I don’t think that’s what you want.”

“There were an awful lot of “we’s” in that sentence,” Regina says with a small smile. Emma looks frightened, wide eyes and her pulse quickens. Regina decides to take pity on the blonde and steps forward, giving her a quick peck on the cheek as she says, “Let’s focus on getting back to Henry, I’m sure he has a lot of questions.”

“How do we explain,” she pushes her hands around the room, trying to explain the giant wolf ripping people apart.

Regina shrugs, “Answer his questions, but keep it as gruesome-free as possible.” Emma nods and Regina squeezes her hand, “Ready?” Together, they walk back toward the great room.

 

\---  _Henry's POV_ \---

 

“Mom!” he shouts as he runs into his mom’s arms.

“Hi Sweetie,” she says with a smile, kissing the top of his head.

He steps back and narrows his eyes at Dark Swan, “You lied to me.”

Emma shrugs and lifts her hands in front of her, “Whoa kiddo, I didn’t lie, I just didn’t give this particular information. I’m sorry,” she says honestly, “but there’s a lot of hidden parts that go into a secret identity.”

He nods, “I’m not okay with this just yet,” but he wraps an arm around his mom and looks up at her, “Can I skip school tomorrow? It’s been a long night.”

Everyone laughs, “Yes, Henry. You can skip school tomorrow.”

“Alright, Pet,” Wicked Aberration says, stepping forward. “Let’s get you home and back into bed. Let your mom and Dark Swan clean this mess up.” He wants to argue but sees a look in his mom’s eyes that keeps him quiet.

“Night Mom,” he says as he sulks over to his aunt.

“Goodnight, dear. I’ll check on you when I get home.” He nods and turns to leave, “Thank you, Sissy,” she calls to the redhead.

The other villain laughs and says, “Night night, Mei Mei.”

That’s how Dark Swan, The Evil Queen, Crimson Vixen, Madame Cascade, and Crypto Beauty wound up staying late for clean up. Crimson uses her teeth to rip a part some of the bodies and drag them all into the great room, Regina uses her power to help separate the bodies to make it easier for Emma to destroy the evidence, and Cascade and Crypto clean away the blood.

There’s a sigh of relief when they’re done. With one last rundown, Regina makes sure all blood residue has been removed (perks of being an ER doctor: you know how to get blood out of stuff). When that’s done, they meet again in the great room. Regina sees the women laying on the ground looking absolutely haggard. “Let’s go,” she declares.

“We’re good?” Emma asks, sitting up.

She nods. Everyone sighs and gets up. Crimson gets up and staggers a bit. “I need a cheeseburger,” she grumbles, thinking of when Henry offered to bring her a cheeseburger after she changed.

The other women are too tired to respond, yet Regina reaches out and uses her power to bring Crimson a cheeseburger.

She gasps and turns to Emma, “You better keep your girlfriend because she’s my new favorite.”

Regina laughs and Emma grabs her hand, “Well, I guess it’s settled then.”

They head out and back to their beds. They split off to go their separate ways, Regina and Kathryn home; Emma, Crimson, and Crypto to the Sanctuary. After the long and gory night, they all sleep soundly, thank god.

 

\--- Epilogue ---

 

“Mom come on!” Henry yells, dragging her by the hand into their building.

They’re the only ones in the elevator but that doesn’t mean it’s safely silent. “Settle down, Henry,” she says with a soft smile, knowing he won’t settle. “We have time.”

“But...but...” there’s a long pause as he thinks, “Aunt Kat said _now_ ,” he tries to plead.

“Yes, dear, but we have time to change,” she responds.

Henry groans, “Fine,” but he still races out of the elevator and into their apartment, “EMMA!” he shouts, jumping at the blonde.

She catches him and laughs, spinning in a circle, “Hey kiddo, ready?”

He gasps, “No! I have to get dressed,” and he takes off like a bat out of hell.

Regina saunters over and kisses the blonde, ‘Hi,” Emma whispers, breathlessly.

“Hi,” Regina replies. “I have to go get ready or Henry will _really_ be upset.”

She steps back but the blonde holds her hand, “Want some help?”

Regina rolls her eyes, “I’m not wearing an Evil Queen outfit, there won’t be a need for any help.”

Emma sulks, “Way to break my heart, babe.”

Before Regina can shake her head, Henry is back into the living room, “Mooooooom,” he whines, “you’re not ready!”

“I’m going, I’m going,” she promises, untangling her hand from Emma’s and offers her a wink over Henry’s head before disappearing into her room.

Two minutes later and she’s back in the living room, ready to go. She finds her sister and her best friend also in the living room, “About time,” her sister says as she stands from the couch.

“Come on, come on!” Henry shouts, moving toward the elevator and out the door.

“Ugh,” Emma groans, also standing, “I hate being a good guy. There’s so much rushing. You ever see villains running? No, they swagger. That’s what I’m good at.” Everyone laughs, all previous villains turned - well, not heroes, but no longer evil super villains. “And you know what else?” she asks, as everyone moves toward the door, “Why do people always say chillin’ like a villain? I mean, have they never met a villain? All they do is plot and scheme. It’s the heroes that have all the down time. They just _swoop_ in long enough to stop us and throw all our hard work down the drain.”

“Alright dear, that’s enough,” Regina says, patting Emma’s hand. “Let’s go help Henry.”

Emma sighs, “He’s the only reason I seem to get roped into helping people.”

Regina raises her eyebrows, “There are... _other_...rewards, yes?”

Emma blushes and clears her throat, “Um, yeah, I mean, uh, I guess?”

Zelena laughs aloud, “Oh you’re in trouble for that one, Swany.”

It’s Emma who groans again, “You know, I hate that you and Red became friends. Using that nickname is absolutely ridiculous.”

“And I’m not sure I like being a hero,” Zelena muses, “Yet here we are.”

“Let’s take a step back. You’re _hardly_ a hero,” Regina says with an eye roll, “A begrudging Good Person at best.” Zelena scoffs but says no more.

“I think this is our almost happy ending, yes?” Emma asks. “I mean, we used to be terrible and evil,” she pauses and looks at Cascade and Crypto - neither of which were particularly _evil_ even at their peak of powerfulness. “Well, most of us,” she amends. “But now instead of trying to destroy the city, control its inhabitants or control the moon, we’re pretty chill and have wine nights and shit.” She shrugs, “And sometimes we save the city, but only for the kid.”

They all agree.

Everyone climbs into the elevator, looking like quite the motley crew, half dressed in their supersuits. They wait until they reach the roof to finish their outfits, for their protection of course, there are still people out there watching, waiting for a super to mess up, to slip up with their identity. So they reach the roof and leap out, ready to stop whatever villain has decided to go too far, tried to take over the city. This is their city. Galactic Genesis used to be the most revered group of supervillains this city has ever seen. But these days? It’s the only thing that keeps the city from toppling under the pressure from other villains.

“Without the darkness, we’d never know the light.”

That’s what Henry’s final project in school was about. It was about people who had changed their lives around from being some of the worst to some of the best. He received an A (of course) and he had to thank all the reformed supervillains for their wonderful participation in his project. At his home, they would sit around the island in his kitchen, sharing stories of the past with laughter and wine. They would tell him stories about some of the worst things they’ve ever done and some of the good things they’ve done to try and atone for their previous actions.

He smiles as he looks around at the women with him, they’re not heroes - even though the public has given them each a new name. The public doesn’t know these are reformed villains. The Evil Queen is still dead, but The Savior heals victims attacked by villains. Dark Swan disappeared and is assumed to be dead (there’s a rumor that she got into a fight with Scarlet Lynx and The Huntress, none have been seen since) but The White Knight uses her martial arts and psychology skills to talk down and fight villains who have bitten off more than they can chew. Crimson Vixen has disappeared and is assumed dead (since she went with Dark Swan for everything) but Loba Roja protects the city and its occupants by patrolling the worst parts of town and supporting The Savior and The White Knight when needed. And they have a little one, a new face added to the mix, a tiny super learning to control their power and help keep the city safe; they call him The Author. He’s young, but incredibly powerful. Madame Cascade and Crypto Beauty were able to keep their names since they weren’t exactly known to be villainous. Wicked Aberration was thought to have moved to some secluded island but when she returned as a hero, the patrons of the city realized that this whole crew was reformed villains.

It’s theorized that they’re all here because of him. The Author. Anyone who has seen this group in action sees The Savior calling out commands with The White Knight at her side, but it’s The Author who reminds them about the people. The people that need saving. It’s as if they are a family. The way they talk to each other, the way they fight together. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think they were all related and living together like the Brady Bunch. That’s quite the entertaining story the residents of this city tell. And whenever tourists visit, they hear about this group of heroes, and if they’re lucky (or unlucky if you think about it) they might just get to see them in action.

No one _ever_ talks about the fact that this group is reformed villains; for fear that these new heroes will stop their work to protect the city. So, the villains stay dead and the heroes defend their city from the forces of evil trying to disrupt the peace.

So, everyone pretends. Everyone pretends these heroes are new and the villains disappeared somehow. And the city is safe. All because of a little boy who wasn’t so normal after all.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Becoming Heroes [ ART ]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15795015) by [mippippippi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mippippippi/pseuds/mippippippi)




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